


Silence

by 00psSwanQueen



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Abuse, Child Abuse, Cute, Deaf Character, Eating Disorders, F/F, Fluff, Hearing Impaired, I Will Go Down With This Ship, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Rough Sex, Sex, Sex Toys, SwanQueen all the way, There Will Never Be Enough SwanQueen, Viva La SwanQueen, fluffy goodness, sex between women, swanqueen - Freeform, swanqueen fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-19
Updated: 2020-10-22
Packaged: 2021-03-08 02:46:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 10
Words: 32,983
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26538310
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/00psSwanQueen/pseuds/00psSwanQueen
Summary: Regina meets a lonely blonde stranger at her regular coffee shop. A chance encounter changes her life for the better.orMy way of procrastinating my other stories and giving you more SwanQueen fluff.
Relationships: Evil Queen | Regina Mills & Emma Swan, Evil Queen | Regina Mills/Emma Swan
Comments: 72
Kudos: 173





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is partially part of a personal experience I’ve had. I am hearing impaired and have dealt with this multiple times in my life. Sometimes it’s hard to understand and communicate with people when my language has been held out of reach from me. I hope you enjoy this story.  
> Much Love,  
> 00psSwanQueen.

Regina rolled her eyes at the slowness of the staff this late in the evening. She normally came to the little coffee shop in the mornings before she rushed off to her office. But today, she didn’t feel like cooking dinner and the coffee shop had a killer grilled chicken sandwich that she sometimes sent her intern to get her for lunch. So here she was, waiting at the end of the counter for her name to be called for her order. The evening staff was compiled of college students and teenagers working for extra pocket money and they weren’t all that efficient. She had to repeat her order at least three time for the cashier. She tapped her foot as she scrolled through her phone’s email. 

The chime above the door startled her a bit and drew her attention to the woman who just entered. The woman had soft blonde curls cascading down her back and over her shoulders. Her bright red jacket stood out from the rest of the café’s decor. Regina felt herself staring a little too long and buried her face in her phone once again. She felt a small blush creep up her neck as she admired the blonde from behind her phone screen. 

Her name being called for her order pulled her way from her thoughts of the mysterious blonde that walked in. She took her food and opted to sit at a table near the back of the small café. She watched as the blonde woman placed her order and went to the end of the counter to wait. The woman leaned against the wall and scrolled through her phone as she waited. Regina shook her head and went back to her dinner. She took a sip of her tea and noticed they gave her lavender tea instead of jasmine, like she ordered. With a sigh, she stood up and walked to the counter to get it corrected. She heard a name called and looked around to see who it was.

“Emma? Is there an Emma here?” The tall skinny man called out to the café. Regina noticed that the blonde didn’t look up from her phone and raised an eyebrow. Maybe the woman had headphones in? She questioned herself mentally. When the man called again, he noticed the blonde and rolled his eyes. He walked out from behind the counter and waved his hand in front of the blonde.

“Yo, blondie, is your name Emma?” He asked.

The blonde blushed and nodded. “Y-Yeah, I’m sorry. Is my order ready?” 

“Uh, yeah. Weren’t you paying attention?” He practically shoved the bag into her hands and walked back behind the counter. 

The blonde woman looked as if she was close to tears. Regina watched as she placed her phone on the counter and opened her backpack to place her take-out into it. Then she turned and left. Regina saw the blonde’s phone still laying on the counter and picked it up. 

“Ma’am!” She called but the blonde didn’t turn around. She was almost out the door when Regina caught her arm.

The blonde turned and Regina was face to face with the most beautiful green eyes she had ever seen. She cracked a small smile and handed over the blonde’s phone. “You forgot this on the counter.” 

Emma blushed ten times harder. “Oh, thank you.” She said as she took the phone from the brunette. 

“It’s no problem, Emma, was it?” Regina smiled a bit bigger.

“Yeah. What’s your name?” Emma asked.

“Regina.” Regina smiled and held out her hand.

Emma shook the woman’s hand and returned the smile. “Could you say your name again?” She asked in a small voice.

Regina studied the woman in front of her, searching to see if maybe the woman was wearing headphones. But she didn’t see any. She shrugged mentally and replied, “Regina.” 

“Regina. Thank you.” Emma smiled.

Regina bit her lip and took a deep breath. “Would you like to sit down? Eating alone is quite boring.” She offered.

Emma smiled shyly and accepted. She followed the brunette to her table towards the back and sat across from her. Emma pulled her meal out of her bag and set it down.

“That guy was an asshole, huh?” Regina commented because she had no idea what possessed her to invite a complete stranger to eat with her.

When Emma didn’t answer she knew something was up. “Emma?” She called and still received no answer. She sighed and tapped the table. Emma’s eyes darted up to meet her own and she shrunk three times in size. 

“I’m sorry. I…” Emma looked down at her food and frowned.

Regina felt guilt flood her. Was Emma?

She reached over and touched Emma’s hand lightly. 

Emma lifted her gaze to the kind woman’s own.

“Emma, are you deaf?” She asked carefully.

Emma nodded slowly. “I am mostly deaf. I can hear when I have my hearing aids, but I forgot to charge them last night and it’s been a rough day for me.” She sighed and kept her eyes trained on Regina’s lips. She didn’t want to miss if Regina responded.

Regina smiled and patted Emma’s hand softly. “It’s okay. There’s nothing wrong with that.” 

Emma let out a sigh of relief and felt oddly calm as Regina caressed her hand.

“I just have to make sure you’re looking at me when I speak.” Regina smiled and pulled her hand away to take a bite out of her sandwich. 

“Yeah, I’m pretty good at reading lips. I get by normally when I have my hearing aids.” Emma shrugged and took a bite out of her grilled cheese sandwich. “Do you come here a lot?” She asked. It was such a cliché question, but she didn’t know what else to say.

Regina nodded, making sure she had Emma’s attention before she responded. “I normally come in the mornings, but I just didn’t feel like making dinner so, here I am.” She shrugged.

Emma chuckled. “I almost never cook, so I always grab something from here before I head home.” She sighed. “I’m glad you decided to come in for dinner.” She smiled. 

Regina blushed a bit. “Why, dear?” She asked.

“Because I would have totally lost my phone and my boss would have killed me.” Emma smiled. “And I would have eaten alone in embarrassment but instead I get to have a chill conversation with a beautiful woman.” Emma blushed as she spoke but kept her eyes trained on Regina’s face to gauge her reaction. 

Regina smiled and blushed at the same time. “Emma, that’s very sweet of you to say.” She smiled. “I’m glad to have dinner with you as well.”

Emma tucked her hair behind her ear and offered Regina the cutest goofiest smiled she had ever seen. In an instant, Regina’s heart melted. She felt butterflies in her stomach and suddenly wasn’t all that hungry. She watched as the blonde continued her meal and sipped on her jasmine tea. 

The two made pleasant conversation as they eat their meal. Regina finally felt the butterflies in her stomach settle and was able to finish off her sandwich. 

Once the two had finished their meal, Emma offered to toss Regina’s trash for her. Regina allowed her to and stood to gather her things. Once Emma walked back and gathered her things, Regina place her hand on Emma’s shoulder. “Would you like to go for a walk with me?” She asked nervously. 

Emma smiled and nodded. “Sure, I really don’t have much else planned for evening and I’d like to get to know you more.” 

Regina smiled and offered her hand to Emma. “Come dear.” 

Emma slipped her hand in Regina’s and melted at the warmth the woman radiated.

The two women walked in a comfortable silence until they reached a small park. Regina suggested they sit to have a better conversation.

“So,” Regina started. “You said you worked in the legal system?” 

Emma nodded. “Yeah, I’m a part time social worker.”

“Only part time?” Regina asked.

“Yeah, I’m still going to school to get my degree. I’m basically an intern at this point. I don’t really get my own cases. I just tag along with another social worker and learn as much as I can.” Emma shrugged.

“What kind of social worker do you want to be?” 

“I want to work with foster kids.” Emma smiled a bit sadly. “There aren’t enough social workers for them and a lot of them suffer because there’s no one to be their voice.” She shook her head of the saddened thoughts she had from when her own voice was neglected in the foster system. “What did you say you did for a living?” 

Regina smiled. “I’m principal at the local elementary school. I used to be the math teacher there, but I recently got promoted because the old principal retired after fifteen years.”

“That’s awesome. I love working with kids. I once thought about becoming a teacher, but I changed my major because I felt like this line of work was calling out to me.” Emma shrugged once again. 

They continued to talk about their work for what seemed like hours. Regina told stories of children that were both troublemakers and her star students at the school. Emma had a few stories of her own, though they weren’t as happy as Regina’s. 

Regina felt her heart go out for Emma’s mission. She always had a fondness for children and hated to see a child being neglected or mistreated. She always wanted to help children and to teach them. But Emma was a real life hero for these kids. Regina was simply a teacher. Emma was on the front lines, fighting for these kids to have a happy and healthy home. 

The sun began to set, and the cold started to seep through Regina’s thin coat. She shivered slightly as she listened to Emma recall a child who she had to sign to. The child was deaf and no one else could communicate with the young girl. Luckily, Emma was the tagalong on that case and was able to help the girl communicate with the social worker. 

“It’s getting late and I’m sure you have to be up early with it being a school night and all.” Emma chuckled slightly.

Regina offered her own chuckled and nodded. “I do have to be up early, but to be quite honest, I don’t wish to say goodbye.” She blushed slightly and shoved her hands into her coat pockets to warm them up.

Emma blushed slightly too and smiled. “Perhaps we could do this again?” She asked.

Regina nodded. “I would like that very much.” She reached into her purse and pulled out a pen and some paper. She wrote down her number and offered it to the blonde.

“Call me?” She smiled then mentally slapped herself because she didn’t know if Emma called with her hearing being the way it was. “Or text me, whatever is easier for you.” She added quickly.

Emma laughed and accepted the paper with the number. “I’ll keep in contact. It was really nice meeting you, Regina.” 

“It was nice meeting you as well, Emma.” Regina stood awkwardly, not sure how to say goodbye.

Emma was bolder that Regina ever could be. She stepped into Regina’s space and placed a quick peck to her cheek. “I hope I didn’t overstep.” Emma said, barely above a whisper.

Regina was frozen for a few seconds as her cheek burned pleasantly where Emma’s soft lips had touched her. “Not at all.” She replied and moved forward to place a kiss on Emma’s cheek.

“I’m gay.” Emma blurted out, her face turning nearly as red as a stop sigh.

Regina laughed and cupped Emma’s flushed cheek. “As am I.” She whispered into Emma’s ear. 

Regina took a step back and offered Emma one last smiled before she began to walk away.

Emma stayed glued to her spot where Regina had left her. She had never been happier that she had forgotten to charge her hearing aids. She was happy that her forgetfulness had allowed her to meet this crazy beautiful woman. She looked down at the piece of paper Regina had slipped into her hand and smiled. She couldn’t wait to go home and text Regina. Hell, she couldn’t wait to see her again.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The romance continues between our favorite Blonde and Brunette.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You asked for more, so here it is. I will update the rating and tags as this story continues. I'm overwhelmed by the positive feedback this story has gotten. Here's some more fluff for you all. Enjoy the cuteness while it lasts. Because we all know that happy times are only temporary. I promise, I won't hurt you all too badly. But our dear sweet Emma and Regina have some issues they will have to work through. Thank you so much for reading and commenting. Find me on Twitter @00psSwanQueen. I love you all!  
>  Yours Truly,  
>  00psSwanQueen

It had been two weeks since the last time Emma had seen Regina. They had kept in contact with each other through texts and FaceTime calls here and there. Emma never went to bed without texting or calling Regina to say good night. On an average day, they would spend about 75% of their time talking to each other. 

They had tried several times to meet up but one thing or another would stop them. They had tried to meet about three days after their first “date”, but Regina got called to a teacher workshop and had to cancel. The next time they tried to meet up, Emma had gotten called away out of state to help with a case. She was gone for almost five days.

Emma was getting worried that if they couldn’t meet up and if life kept getting in the way, Regina would get bored of waiting for her. Emma cleared her schedule for the next week and planned an easy weekend for Regina and herself.

“You sure you wanna spend the whole weekend with me?” Emma joked as she FaceTimed Regina.

Regina laughed and nodded. “Yes dear, as long as you don’t mind me grading a few papers while I’m with you. It’s the end of the semester and one of teachers just went on maternity leave and I must fill in for her.” Regina sighed.

“Awe, I’m sorry you got that extra workload on you.” Emma pouted. “I don’t mind if you have to bring work with you. But make sure you take some time to relax and just unwind.” She smiled.

“Can I call you back in like ten minutes, love?” Regina asked with a shy smile. “One of my teachers needs to speak with me because apparently she’s too stupid to handle a difficult parent.” She rolled her eyes slightly and hated herself internally. She enjoyed whatever time she can get with Emma. Whenever she talks with the blonde, she feels her stress just melt away. Emma was so understanding and never got upset or mad whenever Regina had to rush off to do things or reschedule their calls. 

Emma nodded. “It’s all good. Go kick some ass.” She smiled. 

Regina blew Emma a kiss before the call disconnected. 

Emma flopped onto her bed with a bright smile. What did she do to deserve such an amazing person? She thought back to the first time she heard Regina’s voice. It was like soft velvet had surrounded her. She had called Regina about two days after she had given Emma her number. She had made sure her hearing aids were charged and connected to her phone for the call. When Regina answered, Emma nearly passed out. Her voice was soft and gruff all at the same time. Thinking about that now, Emma could feel a fire burning low in her belly. She could listen to Regina talk all day. Even if the woman was simply reciting the dictionary, Emma would listen intensely. 

Emma got up from her bed to make something for her to eat while Regina handled the nagging teacher. Her phone flashed and caught her attention. She picked it up and saw a text from Regina. Emma smiled brightly at the picture Regina sent her. She felt that same fire in the pit of her stomach burn hotter as she admired Regina in her reading glasses. She had little to no make-up on and her hair was picked up in a messy bun as she pouted her bottom lip. The text read: “This bitch is giving me a headache.” 

Emma laughed wholeheartedly and sent her a text back. “Want me to go kick her ass for you?”

A few second later Regina responded. “No dear but thank you for the offer. I’ll keep that in mind just in case.”

Emma smiled down at her phone like an idiot. She was beaming for this woman. She hadn’t fallen this hard for someone since her middle school crush, Lily. Emma shuddered at the thought of that short-lived romance. Lily had just used Emma to rebel against her religious parents. Sadly, Emma had grown attached to the brunette rebel and that was her first real heartbreak. She shook her head of those haunting thoughts and focused on the brown eyed beauty that she managed to snatch. She removed her heated leftovers from the microwave and cursed under her breath when her hand touched the too hot plate. 

“Fuck, fuck, fuck! That's hot!” She hissed and placed the plate on the counter next to her microwave.

Suddenly her light in her kitchen flashed yellow, letting her know someone was at her door. She tucked her phone into her pocket of her sweatpants and walked over to see who was at her door. She looked through the peephole and noticed young boy there. She opened her door and came face to face with a boy that couldn’t have been more than sixteen.

“Hello?” Emma asked as she looked the teen up and down. 

“Hey, um, my mom and I just moved in next door and where wondering if you knew the number to the overnight maintenance? Our pipe busted and we can’t seem to shut the water off.” He mumbled. 

“Yeah, sure.” Emma nodded. She searched through her phone for a bit until she came up with the number. “You got something to write with?” She asked.

“Uh, I got my phone.” He shrugged.

“Okay, just type it in your phone.” Emma recited the number and the teen thanked her.

“Thanks. See ya.” The teen blushed and walked away.

Emma nodded and closed her door. She sighed as she walked back to her kitchen to grab her leftover Chinese food. She sat on her couch and flipped through Hulu to see what she could watch. She settled on a show she used for background light whenever she was falling asleep. It was a nonsense cartoon about some cat and fish and their random adventures. Just as she was digging into her food, her phone vibrated in her pocket. 

She scrambled to wipe her face and answer the call from Regina. “Hey.” She mumbled as she tried to swallow her mouthful of food.

Regina snorted slightly. “Did I get you at a bad time, love?”

Emma blushed in slight embarrassment. “Not really, I was just-”

“Digging into dinner?” Regina finished for her. She smiled at the childlike way Emma did certain things. She found it quite endearing and cute. She loved how the blonde never held back at being who she was. “You missed your mouth there, sweetheart.” Regina chuckled as she pointed to the right side of Emma’s mouth.

Emma wiped her face with the back of her hand. “Thanks.” She shook off her embarrassment and continued to eat. “How did the call go with your teacher?”

Regina sighed heavily. “Annoyingly. I swear, she has no spine whatsoever.” She rubbed her temples. “I literally had to write her a script as to what she should say to the parents. Their son is a troublemaker and always finds a way to get away with everything. When I became principal, I put a stop to that quickly. But since his teacher has been failing him, his parents got upset and came at her. And since she’s a spineless follower, she nearly let them walk all over her.”

Emma listened very closely to Regina as she continued to ramble on about the child in question and about how many times that child had found himself in her office for his misbehavior. Emma was just completely focused on how beautiful Regina was when she began to talk about her work. She was so passionate about it all and it made her eyes sparkle. She would get so excited about everything and this really goofy smile would be constantly glued to her face or this really cute pout that Emma just wanted to kiss away. 

Emma was pulled from her trance when Regina asked her question. “Huh? What was that?” She asked as she blinked a few times.

Regina laughed slightly. “Did you leave earth for a second there?” She teased lightly.

Emma nodded as she laughed a bit. “Yeah I was visiting my home planet.” She joked back.

Regina smiled and sighed. “Sadly, I’m going to have to let you go. It’s nearly eleven and I need to be up by six tomorrow morning.”

Emma pouted. “I get it. Have a good night Gina.” Emma smiled and blew a kiss to Regina.

Regina waved at the blonde and ended the call. She placed her phone on next to her on her desk and smiled. She felt like a lovesick teenager. She had never felt this way about anyone in her life and she wanted to hold on to this feeling for as long as she could. She scanned over her planner for week and made sure she had nothing unexpected coming up that weekend. She wanted to give Emma as much of her undivided attention as she could. She scribbled a few more notes on her papers and stood from her chair. She stretched her back and shut off her desk lamp. Then she padded her way to her bedroom to ready herself for sleep.

___________________________________SQ___________________________________________

The next few days flew by for Regina. Between parent/teacher meetings and the fact she had to cover for her missing teacher, she couldn’t text Emma as much as she’d like to. She felt like she was ignoring the blonde, but Emma insisted that it was all okay. Regina would call her at the end of her days and apologize for being absent for so long, but Emma would just smile and tell her not to worry. 

By Wednesday, Regina was completely exhausted. She had dealt with more than her fair share of upset parents and a school board that was at each other’s throats. It was the middle of the day and she was sitting at her desk shifting through her teachers’ work. She removed her reading glasses from her face and rubbed her temples as the headache settled in. She had to do something about those troublemaking students. The board was pissed with her because she didn’t allow the parents to walk all over her and they kept getting complains from the parents about how their children were failing. She had to find a way to mend all this. The stress continued to pile up on her and she just wanted to breakdown and scream. Her desk phone rang suddenly, and she hoped, to whoever was listening to her prayers, that it was not another angry parent. 

“This is Ms. Mills.” Regina answered.

“Ms. Mills, there is an Emma Swan here to see you.” Her receptionist told her.

Regina smiled and a bit of her stress melted away. “Send her in.” She hung up the phone and waited for her blonde to show up.

The rest of Regina’s stress melted away as Emma entered her office. “Emma.” She sighed. “How did you find me?”

Emma blushed and took a seat on one of the plush chairs in front of Regina’s desk. “I called like two other schools asking for you. I wanted to surprise you with lunch.” She said as she held up a bag of take out from the little café they had met at. 

Regina stood from her seat and walked over to where Emma was. She took the bag gratefully and set it behind her on the desk. She bent down and place a sweet peck to Emma cheek. “Thank you, sweetheart.”

Emma relaxed a bit more as Regina seemed pleased with her. She was so worried that Regina would think she was some kind of a stalker for finding her at work when the brunette had never told her what school she worked at. 

“You know, you could have just texted me and asked what school I was at?” Regina chuckled at the flustered blonde.

“Yeah, I know.” Emma shrugged. “But then, it wouldn’t have been a surprise.” 

Regina shook her head and laughed. “You are something else, Miss Swan.”

Emma just shrugged again and offered Regina one of her goofy smiles. “Yeah, I’ve been told that a few times.”

“Did you want to eat this here or we could go out to the playground and have proper picnic? The children are in the cafeteria for another thirty minutes or so.” Regina offered.

“Here is fine, unless you need some fresh air. Doesn’t matter to me.” Emma said.

“Come on then, I’m tired of looking at these gray walls.” Regina chuckled and reached for Emma’s hand.

Emma took Regina’s hand and grabbed the bag of takeout. Regina lead her down a few hallways until they came to the back of the school. Emma shuddered slightly as memories of her childhood came to the forefront of her mind. School was never a pleasant memory for her. She spent way too much time alone and teased for being a foster kid. She had been moved so much, she lost count of how many schools she was moved to. She never stayed in one place long enough to make friends.

Regina sensed Emma’s unease and lead her outside quicker than she had planned. She brought them to a small table with a bench attached to it. Emma sat to Regina’s right and opened their bag of food. She gave Regina the sandwich she ordered for her and dug into her own grilled cheese. 

Regina noticed a small salad in the bag. She brought it out and opened it, placing it between them. 

“You need a vegetable, darling.” Regina said offering Emma a fork full of the greens.

Emma scrunched up her nose and shook her head. “Nah, I’m good with my grilled cheese.”

Regina lifted her eyebrow and offered the fork to Emma again. “Eat.” She challenged the blonde.

Emma pursed her lips but opened her mouth to accept the mixture of greens. She hated salads and preferred to eat stuff that was smothered in grease or deep fried. 

“See? Was that so hard?” Regina poked at Emma.

“I don’t like veggies.” Emma swallowed and continued to eat her grease covered sandwich.

Regina rolled her eyes. “Your arteries will thank me later.” 

Emma stuck her tongue out at Regina before she sipped on her soda. “Thanks, mom.” She mumbled.

Regina just laughed and continued to eat her grilled chicken sandwich and salad.

The rest of their lunch when smoothly. They talked of their work and how their week was going. Regina was able to get Emma to eat two more bites of her salad before Emma nearly threw a tantrum. Regina just laughed and enjoyed Emma’s childlike behavior. She understood why children would trust Emma over any other social worker. Emma was just like them and they felt comfortable with her. This thought made Regina smile and her heart would swell with love and admiration for the blonde.

Once their lunch was finished, Regina gathered their trash and tossed it in the near by bin. She held out her hand for Emma to take and felt her heart flutter in her chest when Emma intertwined their fingers. She lead Emma back to the front of the school and bid her farewell.

“I’ll see you soon, right?” Emma asked and cursed herself for sounding so desperate.

Regina smiled warmly and nodded. “Friday night, seven o’clock.” 

Emma nodded. She wanted to kiss Regina goodbye but wasn’t sure if Regina was comfortable with that.

Regina was one step ahead of Emma. She leaned in and pecked a quick kiss to Emma’s lips before she turned and walked back towards her office.

Emma stood there, her lips burning from Regina’s kiss. She felt her heart skip a beat as she turned and walked out of the school building. She wanted to run up the nearest building and scream that she had the most wonderfully kind and beautiful girlfriend in the world. She walked back to her own office with a permanent smile on her face.

The secretary at her work saw Emma come in with that goofy lovesick smile and shook her head. “You got it bad, Swan.” She chuckled.

“Oh, shut it Rubes.” Emma called back and plopped on her chair behind her desk. “One day, when you stop flirting with every girl that comes your way and settle down, you’ll understand.”

Ruby just shook her head. “Nah, I’m not ready to be whipped like you.”

“I’m not whipped…” Emma pouted. “I’m just…” She sighed. “In love...”

Ruby sighed. “Whipped.” She joked.

Emma balled up a paper and tossed it at the brunette. “Shut up!”

Ruby just laughed and continued her work.

Emma scooted closer to her desk and opened her computer. She began to type out her report from the last case she piggybacked on as she thought about her weekend with Regina. Friday couldn’t come fast enough.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Our favorite women get ready for their weekend together. With a few bumps in the road.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so here's a bit more fluff for you before we get to the hard stuff. Damn, I'm spoiling you all with daily chapter updates. But you guys are so damn sweet and your feedback is helping the creative process flow. I might slow down the updates because life is a thing and I've just had some time off from work when this little idea popped into my head. With that being said, I'll update the chapters whenever I have time. Thank you all for your kind words. You all are the best.  
> Much Love,  
> 00psSwanQueen

Friday morning Emma woke up and began to clean her apartment. She had insisted Regina come over and they spend a day at her apartment and a day at Regina’s house. Emma didn’t want to just crash at Regina’s place for the whole weekend because she felt like that was asking too much of the brunette. Though Regina had said it would be fine and that it was no problem, Emma pleaded with Regina to come over for just one night. Emma was excited when Regina agreed they would spilt the weekend.

Emma threw on some classic 80’s music and blasted it through her speakers she kept in her living room. She didn’t feel like putting her hearing aids on this morning because she wasn’t planning on going out until later that day. Sometimes, if she was going to spend the whole of her day at home, she opted to keep her hearing aids out. They were a little on the bulky side and hurt her ears if she wore them for too long. She had to take a break from them every so often. She hoped that one day she could afford to get the ones that just sat inside her ear and where nearly invisible to those around her.

She started in her living room, cleaning up containers of old takeout and cups she was too lazy to take back to her kitchen. Then she grabbed all the blankets and pillows off her couch and tossed them in the washer. She was dancing around and jamming to her playlist, sometimes singing at the top of her lungs as she cleaned. She moved from the living room to her kitchen to wash the dishes and clean out her fridge. She was startled when the light above her sink began to flash yellow rapidly. She dried her hands quickly and rushed over to the door.

The door was physically shaking from the rapid knocking coming from the other side. Emma lowered her speakers on her way to the door and pulled it open quickly.

A flustered older blonde lady stood on the other side of the door. Her face held a grimace that made Emma feel like she was three inches tall.

“What the hell is your problem?!” The woman shouted at Emma.

Emma stood there with her mouth opening and closing as she tried to find her words. “I-…” She started but the older blonde cut her off.

“It is eight in the morning and you are blasting that headache music because?!” The lady shouted again.

“I’m sorry. I was so used to having no one live next to me, I totally forgot.” Emma choked out.

The lady rolled her eyes. “Yes, well try to remember that now you have neighbors, okay?” The woman rolled her eyes and turned away. “Turn that shit down.” She called behind her, but Emma didn’t catch what she said.

“What?” Emma asked.

The woman spun around and gave her death glare. “I said,” She walked back up to Emma and nearly got into her face. “Turn that shit down!”

Emma shrunk back. “I’m sorry. I’m deaf and I don’t have my hearing aids in so I can’t hear you if you turn away from me.” Emma sassed back. She was about done with this woman’s rudeness.

The woman’s face fell and suddenly there was guilt written all over her face. “O-Oh…” Her check flushed red and Emma just crossed her arms over her chest in annoyance.

“Yeah. That’s kinda why I had my music loud. But I throw my headphones on. I’m sorry I woke you.” Emma shrugged and leaned against her door frame.

“I’m sorry I got so upset. I was up late last night with Dean. We can’t get the internet to work because the outlet for the landline was trashed.” The woman sighed.

Emma nodded. “Yeah this place isn’t the best. I had to make quite a few improvements myself before everything worked out for me.”

“I’m Mal.” The blonde held out her hand to Emma.

Emma took her hand and shook it politely. “I’m Emma. Do you need help with that internet cable still?”

Mal nodded. “Please? If it’s not too much trouble. I have no clue what I’m doing.”

Emma nodded. “Let me get a few things and I’ll be over there.” With that Emma watched Mal leave and head back to her apartment. Emma closed her door and went to her bedroom. She grabbed one of her hearing aids and placed it in her ear. She shut off her speakers on her way out and grabbed the extra cord she had from when she set up her own internet. She grabbed a pair of wire cutters and pliers and walked next door.

\----------------------------SQ----------------------------

Regina sat at a desk in front of twenty students. She had given them a worksheet to do while she graded papers. She didn’t want to have to take anything home with her tonight. Though at the pace she was going, she might still have to take some. She just wanted to focus on Emma this weekend. It was going to be their first real date since they started talking. She had gotten a good morning text from Emma but after that, her phone had been silent. She wondered if Emma got busy. She also started to doubt herself. Maybe she was pushing Emma too quickly. She had kissed her when she showed up on Wednesday and they never really talked about it.

Regina was pulled from her thoughts when the bell rang, and she dismissed the class to their next one. She gathered her papers, readying herself for the next flood of students to come in. As they filed into the class she stood and moved over to the whiteboard.

“Alright, Mrs. Nolan was having you work on your personal essays. So today, I want you to pull them out and pass them to the front. I’ll be passing these back out to you by the end of class. I’ll look over your grammar and spelling. While I do that, I want you to work on chapter six in your books.” She announced and wrote the questions on the board. “When you have finished reading the chapter, answer these questions on your own paper. It’s due by the end of class.”

Regina heard a snort from the door of her classroom and turned her head to find Emma leaning against the doorframe with a smile on her face.

The children in the room chucked as Regina turned nearly as red as the blouse she wore that day. She turned and gave the students a stern glare before she walked over to where her girlfriend was.

“Miss Swan, what can I do for you?” Regina smirked as she lead the blonde out of the classroom and shut the door.

“I just wanted to stop by and give you this.” Emma held up a cup of coffee and a small bag with a pastry in it. “I was out and about getting a few things and I thought you could use a pick me up.”

Regina’s heart fluttered in her chest and a wide smile graced her perfectly painted lips. “You’re sweet.” She blushed.

Emma shrugged. “I try. I’m sorry I interrupted your class.”

Regina shook her head and waved her hand through the air as if to dismiss the topic. “Nonsense, darling. They are working on a chapter right now. They don’t need me to hold their hand through it.”

Emma laughed. “Still. I didn’t mean to embarrass you, Ms. Mills.” She teased.

Regina bumped Emma shoulder with her own and chuckled. “You just earned yourself a detention for your actions, Miss Swan.” She lowered her voice and gave Emma a very dark look.

Emma had never been so happy to hear those word coming out of a teacher’s mouth. She licked her suddenly dry lips and swallowed hard. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Miss Mills.” She nearly moaned.

Regina invaded Emma’s personal space and pressed a sweet kiss to her flushed cheek before she ran her tongue over the blonde’s earlobe. “Tonight.” She whispered.

Emma shuddered as the heat in her cheeks pooled down into her stomach. She rolled her hips slightly and pulled away from the tempting brunette. “You better get your ass back in that classroom before I find the nearest janitor’s closet and pull you in there with me.”

Regina just growled lowly. “Now who’s making promises they can’t keep?” She raised an eyebrow at the blonde.

Emma just rolled her eyes. “Get back to work.” She huffed and handed Regina her coffee and treat. “The faster you finish here, the faster I get you all to myself.”

Regina smiled and pressed another longing kiss to Emma’s lips. “I’ll see you tonight.”

Emma nodded and watched as Regina walked back into the classroom. Emma wondered how she got so damn lucky. This woman was crazy beautiful and sexy. She was kind and more importantly, she was totally into Emma. The blonde was on cloud nine as she walked out of the school to her car. She blasted her music as she sang happily. She drove back to her apartment with so much excitement about their date tonight. She had to make everything perfect.

\----------------------------------SQ-------------------------------

Regina cursed to herself as she hurried home from her job. The damn school board had an emergency meeting and they roped her into it. Though she didn’t understand why she had to be there if the matter was with the high school. She assumed the reason was because she was the principal because none of her other teachers were there. She rushed home to charge her phone just enough so she could test Emma. Her phone had died just after she was told she had to stay for the meeting. It was close to eight when she finally got to her home. She plugged in her phone as she quickly packed her bag.

When her phone finally came on, it blew up with texts and calls from her mother, sister and Emma. She ignored the texts and calls from her mother and sister and focused on the ones Emma sent her. Her heart broke a little when she saw she had three texts from Emma and two missed calls from her. Regina read through the texts and felt her whole soul shatter.

_“Hey Gina, hope your day went well. Here’s my address so you don’t get lost. You can park next to the yellow bug. That’s my car. See you soon.”_

_“Hey, just wondering if you got lost along the way. If you need me to stand outside just let me know.”_

_“Pizza is getting cold. Just wondering if you were still coming. If not, it’s cool. Hope you have a good night and I’ll see you tomorrow?”_

Regina felt like she wanted to cry. As soon as she was done with her packing, she called Emma.

“Hello?” Emma answered the phone. Regina could hear the heartbreak through the phone.

“Emma, darling, I’m so, so sorry. My phone died on me before I got out of work and the school board had an emergency meeting. I’m on my way if you’ll still have me?” Regina threw her bag in the back of her car and plugged her charger into her car as she set up her Bluetooth.

She could hear Emma shift through the phone. “Yeah, if you still wanna come. I can heat up the pizza.”

“I’ll be there in ten minutes, dear.”

“I’ll leave the door unlocked. You can just walk in. Okay?” Emma asked.

“Alright. See you soon.” Regina hung up the phone with a sigh. She could clearly hear Emma disappointment. She hated herself for worrying Emma.

Regina drove through traffic as fast as she could to get to Emma’s apartment. She parked next to the yellow bug as Emma asked her to. She grabbed her bag and made her way into the building. She found Emma’s door and took a deep breath before she entered the woman’s home. It was dark in the small hallway as she entered.

“Emma?” She called out. When she received no response, she wondered further into the space. She saw a light coming from, what she assumed was, the kitchen. She found Emma standing next to the microwave as she heated the pizza up. Regina sighed in relief and approached the blonde. She placed a hand on Emma’s shoulder and offered the startled blonde a smile.

Emma jumped a bit at the sudden contact, but relaxed when she saw it was Regina. “Hey.” Emma whispered.

Regina felt her heart shatter on the spot. Emma looked like she had been crying. Her eyes were red and puffy, and her cheeks were flushed. Regina cupped Emma’s cheek and pulled her in for a hug. She said nothing to the blonde as she just held her. She could feel Emma relax into her embrace. Tears stung the back of Regina’s eyes as she just comforted the blonde.

Emma laid her head on Regina’s shoulder and just held her. She was so scared that she had run Regina off. She’d shown up twice to the woman’s work unannounced, and she had made a few comments that could be considered to have crossed the line. When Regina didn’t answer her first text, she figured Regina was bus cleaning up after the school day. When she got no response to her second text, she began to worry that maybe Regina had forgotten her address. She called Regina to give her directions, but her call went straight to voicemail. She tried calling once again, just in case Regina was on the line with someone else but got the same voicemail. It was then that the tears had made their appearance. She cried as she typed out the last text. She was sure Regina wasn’t coming and she was a fool to believe that someone like Regina could ever really be interested in someone like her. She was fated to be alone. But then Regina had called her, explained everything and here she was. This amazingly perfect woman was just holding her and petting her hair, and suddenly all those worries began to melt away. She was close to tears again and could feel them burning the corners of her eyes as she just held on to the brunette and breathed in her scent.

The beeping of the microwave pulled Regina from her thoughts. She pulled away slightly, still keeping Emma in her arms. She lifted Emma’s chin and placed a kiss to her pouted lips. “I’m sorry I made you worry.” She whispered.

Emma caught ever word and could see the pain plastered all over Regina’s face. She reached up and cupped Regina’s cheek between her hands. “I’m sorry I made you cry.”

Regina didn’t even realize she let a few tears fall down her face until Emma wiped them away. “Don’t you worry about that. How about instead of this pizza, I make us something fresh to eat?”

Emma looked back at the microwave with the three pieces she had already heated up and pouted. “You’re gunna make me eat veggies again, aren’t you?”

Regina threw her head back and let out a beautiful laugh. Emma’s only wish is that she would have put her hearing aid in so she could hear this beautiful woman laughing in her kitchen.

“I promise, my veggies are more tasteful than just a plain salad.” Regina nuzzled Emma’s nose and gave her a quick peck on the lips.

Emma jumped to life realizing Regina still had her bag slung over her shoulder. “Here let me take that to the bedroom for you. I need to grab my hearing aids anyway.”

Regina smiled gratefully and handed Emma her bag. “Could you do me a favor and plug my phone in over there? I only got to charge it enough to call you and it’s dying on me again.”

Emma nodded and took Regina’s bag and her phone. She placed Regina’s bag on the bed and plugged her phone into the wall next to her own phone. She grabbed one of her hearing aids and turned it on. Just as she was about to leave the room, Regina’s phone lit up. Emma turned and thought about ignoring it. But her curiosity got the best of her and she checked who was calling her girlfriend. She saw the contact said, “Cora Mills”. She raised her eyebrow in question but called out to Regina.

“Gina! Someone named Cora is calling you!”

Regina rolled her eyes as she set the knife down from chopping up some veggies she had brought to make dinner with. She took a deep breath and walked over to where she heard Emma calling her from.

“That’s my mother.” She sighed as she entered Emma’s bedroom. She took a moment to look around the cozy space. The whole apartment screamed Emma. In the kitchen, Regina found poptarts and gummy snacks. She also found an array of sugary cereals and in her freezer, she found every kind of microwavable meal known to man. As she looked around Emma’s bedroom, she noticed the pile of laundry she more than likely threw off the bed to make it and she also noticed a medium sized stuffed rabbit sitting in the center of the bed.

“You’re not gunna answer it?” Emma asked.

Regina shook her head. “No. I don’t have anything to say to her right now.”

Emma saw the crease between Regina’s eyebrows deepen. She could tell from Regina’s reaction that her mother and her didn’t get along well. Emma walked over to Regina and just embraced her. She nuzzled herself into Regina’s neck and pressed a few kisses there. “Are you okay?” She asked.

Regina held onto Emma as she calmed herself. Her mother had a way of just making her blood boil without even having to say anything. She took a deep breath and centered herself by focusing on the soft vanilla scent of what she assumed was Emma shampoo. “I’ll be alright, darling.” She pressed a kiss to Emma’s crown and pulled away. “Now, let’s go finish making dinner.” She lead Emma out of the bedroom, forgetting all about her mother’s constant calling.

Emma blinked a few times when she saw all the stuff Regina had set out on the counter. “Where did you get all this from?”

Regina chuckled. “From the store. But I can see you don’t stray from the frozen food isle, so you wouldn’t know these things exist.” She joked.

Emma pouted. “I never learned to cook. It was just easier to nuke everything.” She shrugged. “You didn’t have to go through all this though. I’m sure you’ve had a long enough day without having to come here to cook for me.”

Regina smiled and went back to chopping the veggies. “It’s not a problem, sweetheart. Cooking has always been a relaxing thing for me. I really don’t mind.” She scraped the chopped mushrooms, bell peppers and onions in a frying pan and started to section off the chicken breast. “Plus, my body can only take so much grease in one day.”

Emma smiled and sat at her small table. “So, what’s on the menu tonight?”

“Grilled chicken with rice and sautéed mushroom, bell peppers and onions.” Regina said as she placed two pieces of chicken in another pan to start cooking them.

“Damn. That does sound better than reheated pizza.” Emma closed her eyes as the scent of Regina’s cooking filled her small kitchen. Honestly, she had never used more than one burner on the stove and that was just to boil water for her ramen or tea. But with Regina in the kitchen, it was like the whole thing came to life. Emma’s small one bedroom apartment felt warm and cozy. For once it wasn’t cold and depressing and a constant reminder that she was alone in this world.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Our favorite women's weekend date is off to a rough start. Somethings from both their pasts come back with a vengeance and they have to learn to trust each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now we start dealing with the hard stuff. I will warn you now, there are mentions of rape, childhood trauma and child abuse. I have updated the tags accordingly. I promise, things will get better for our girls. They just have a lot to work through. This chapter is a little longer that my others, but I hope you enjoy it all the same. I promise, better time are yet to come. Just stay with me through this rough patch. Our ladies need our support.   
> Much Love,  
> 00psSwanQueen

About thirty minutes later, Emma was eating vegetables willingly. She was amazed by Regina’s ability to make them taste so damn good. Emma had finished her first plate in under ten minutes. Regina offered her seconds and Emma accepted instantly.

As she was cutting into her chicken furiously, Regina’s hand came to rest on Emma wrist. “Slow down, my love.” Regina said with a worried tone. “You’ll choke if you keep shoveling the food into your mouth like that.”

Emma blushed and swallowed the mouthful she had. She looked down at her food and suddenly didn’t feel all that hungry anymore. “I’m sorry. I just…” Emma could feel her throat closing as she remembered her time in the foster system. If she didn’t eat fast in some of the group homes she was in, she wouldn’t get to eat at all.

Regina saw the change in Emma’s demeanor and cupped her cheek gently. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you feel bad. I just didn’t want you to choke or hurt yourself.”

Emma felt the tears return to her eyes and she wiped them away harshly. She hated that her past trauma still affected her to this day. She always found herself still living in fear of her food being taken or always feeling like someone was about to attack her. She was in constant fight or flight mode and she hated herself for it.

Regina saw Emma stiffen and scooted closer to the blonde. She wrapped her arm around Emma’s shoulders and pulled her closer. “I’m sorry.” She sighed into the blonde’s hair.

Emma shook her head. “It’s not your fault I'm damaged.” She choked out.

Regina worried her bottom lip as she heard the blonde’s admission. “You’re not damaged.”

“I am.” Emma protested. “Even though I’ve made a pretty okay life for myself and never had to worry about someone taking my food ever again, I still have this stupid fear that I have to eat fast. Or, I have to hover over my plate so no one can take from it.”

Regina didn’t know what to say at that moment. She kissed the crown of Emma’s head and pulled her into her lap. She sat Emma sideways on her lap and brought her close to her chest, tucking Emma’s head under her strong chin. She rubbed up and down the blonde’s back and rocked slightly. After a few beats, Regina began to speak.

“Emma, darling, just because you have these habits, doesn’t make you damaged. From what I gathered; you were in a rough spot growing up. But look at you now? You’ve done very well for yourself.” Regina took a deep breath and continued when Emma didn’t speak. “Sometimes, it’s hard to let go of the past because most of the time, it leaves a pretty nasty scar.” The brunette felt tears build up at the corners of her eyes as she thought of her own childhood scars. Some were like Emma’s, mental. But Regina also had physical reminders of her past as well. She shook her head and told herself this wasn’t about her. She needed to be strong for Emma right now.

“Though you have that scar; you are so much stronger than you were before. The scar means you survived it.” Regina ran her fingers through Emma’s hair and lost her words for a moment as she heard her phone going off in the other room. She knew it was her mother. She couldn’t deal with her right now. In fact, she couldn’t deal with her, ever.

“R’gina.” Emma sniffled out.

Regina forgot everything else in that moment at the tone of Emma’s voice. She sounded so small and frail. Emma had curled herself as small as possible in Regina’s lap and just buried her face in the side of Regina’s neck. Emma listened to everything Regina said. It made her feel validated. Regina didn’t make her feel like a damaged little girl or like a charity case. She understood Emma and reasoned with her horrible thoughts about herself. Most of all, Regina literally picked her up from her seat and was currently rocking Emma side to side to comfort her. It was no wonder Regina was such a good teacher. She had so much compassion. Emma felt safe and loved in the brunette’s arms. She felt her inner child calm at the soothing sound of Regina’s voice. No one else could do that for Emma. She allowed the tears to fall freely as she just held on to this perfect woman.

“P-Please, don’t leave me.” Emma whimpered.

Regina felt her heart shatter. She held Emma tightly to herself and shook her head. “Never.” She pet Emma’s head and pressed kisses to her crown as she whispered sweet nothings until the blonde’s tears slowed down. She could never leave this woman. She was everything to Regina and she had only been with the woman for a few weeks. As each day went by, the brunette fell deeper and harder for the blonde in her lap. She felt the words build up and get caught in her throat. They were choking her. She wanted to just spit it out but feared it might me too soon. She didn’t want Emma to run away. So, Regina swallowed those words down and pulled Emma’s plate across the table to sit next to her own. “Emma, darling, are you still hungry?” She asked.

Emma nodded her head. She really didn’t eat at all during the day. She was so busy cleaning and helping her neighbors with their small improvements, that all she had was a bearclaw from the café. The first plate she’d eaten settled and she was hungry for more. She’d lost her appetite for a few minutes. But after Regina calmed her and held her in her lap, Emma’s stomach was back in business.

Regina kept Emma on her lap as she cut a small portion of chicken off Emma’s plate. She brought the fork up to Emma’s lips and encouraged her to take the bite.

Emma took the bite Regina offered. The action was very intimate for her. She had never done this with anyone before. She watched as Regina would take a piece from her plate and give it to Emma, then she’d get a forkful for herself. Emma relaxed into this little give and take. Once both plates were finished, Regina just sat back and rubbed up and down Emma’s back. She was perfectly content to stay like this with her girl.

“I’m not hurting you, am I?” Emma asked as she shifted a bit on Regina’s lap.

Regina shook her head. “No, sweetheart. You forget that I deal with children all day and when I’m with the younger grades, I get children sitting on me hours at a time. Honestly, you’re light as a feather.”

Emma shrunk into Regina’s embrace once again. She took a few deep breaths and centered herself. “How did I get so lucky?” Emma mused.

Regina chuckled. “I’m the lucky one, dear. No one else has ever shown up to my work with food and pick me ups.”

Emma kissed Regina’s cheek. “No one has ever comforted me the way you did. And I’ve never let anyone feed me before.”

Regina hid her face in Emma’s hair. “I’m sorry, I just reacted on instinct.”

Emma nudged Regina’s head and pressed a longing kiss to her lips. “I enjoyed it. Honestly.” She smiled and connected their lips again. She pulled away for a moment and schooled her features. “But don’t think you can do this when we go out to eat.” She mocked sternness.

Regina just laughed as she held Emma in her lap. “Wouldn’t dream of it. I know you’re a big girl.”

Emma pouted slightly but broke into a huge smile when Regina kissed her pout. “Let me clean up the kitchen, then we can curl up on the couch for a movie?”

“I’ll help you clean up.” Regina offered.

“Nope.” Emma placed a hand on Regina’s chest. “You’ll go get comfy on the couch and pick something to watch, or you’re welcome to shower if you need to. The bathroom is in my room.”

“Emma, that’s not fair to make you clean up my mess. I cooked and made all this mess.” Regina protested.

Emma shook her head. “Fair is fair. You cooked; I’ll clean. End of story.” She nodded firmly.

Regina huffed at the blonde’s stubbornness. “Fine. But I’m only allowing this because this is your home.” She waited for Emma to get off her lap before she stood. She grabbed Emma by the waist and pulled her flush against her chest. “But I won’t let you pull this stubbornness at my house.” She purred. “You’ll sit back allow me to spoil you a bit.”

Emma swallowed hard at the gruffness of her girlfriend’s tone. She wanted to leave the dishes for tomorrow and to hell with the movie, all she wanted was to toss Regina on her bed and ravish her. But she swallowed her attraction and forced herself to pull away from the tempting brunette. “I’ll meet you in the living room in fifteen?”

Regina nodded. “I think I’ll go take a shower. I feel a little gross being in my work clothes for so long.”

Emma nodded and watched Regina go. “Oh, Gina!” She called. “The towels are in the closet behind the bathroom door!”

“Thank you, darling!” Regina called back.

\-------------------------------SQ----------------------------

Emma finished cleaning the kitchen in less than fifteen minutes. She was excited to just be able to relax with Regina. She gave herself a little mental pep talk about keeping her trauma at bay for the rest of the evening. They had already had an emotionally draining evening. She just wanted to plop on her couch, cuddle into her girlfriend’s arms and watch something. Then she wanted to curl into Regina’s arms as the two of them drifted off into sleep. Well, she didn’t want to sleep right away. She wanted to engage in a few _activities_ before sleep overtook them. Emma’s arousal pooled in her lower belly as she thought of her very naked girlfriend in the shower. She had half a mind to slip into the bathroom and join her in the shower. But she had no clue if Regina would be okay with that. She decided to keep that idea for another time. She was sure there would be plenty of opportunities for them to live out each of their fantasies.

Emma plopped onto her couch, lazily flipping back and forth between Netflix and Hulu. She couldn’t decide what she wanted to watch or what Regina would approve them watching together. She knew the woman loved to laugh and that she enjoyed programming in Spanish. Emma didn’t mind foreign language films because they often came with subtitles and it made it easier for her to follow along. She thought about just putting on a romcom. Those were always easy for her to follow. But her absolute favorite movies, were the Disney classics. She could watch them every day and never get tired of them. Though she feared Regina might not want to watch children’s programming.

Emma again kept flipping back and forth as to what she wanted to watch. She sighed heavily and decided that she would choose something when Regina joined her.

Regina stepped out of the small shower feeling more relaxed than when she arrived. She really needed that shower to help wash away the stress she was under that day. Regina was really looking forward to watching a movie and just being able to relax with Emma. She had never felt so at ease with a lover before. Her mind was pulled from her little daydream of her and Emma doing this every night after they got done with work by her phone ringing. She wrapped a towel around her form and went to check the caller ID of her phone.

Regina groaned to herself as rage built up. Her mother had called her seven more times after she had told Emma to ignore the damn thing. She nearly ripped the charger from the wall as she picked up the phone and answered.

“What is it that you want?” She nearly growled into the phone.

“Really, Regina? Is that anyway to greet your mother?” Cora sighed into the phone.

“Hello mother.” Regina rolled her eyes. “What is so damn important that you had to call nearly ten times and send Zelena after me?”

“Well, that nice man Leopold will be in town next week and he would really like a chance to say hello to you.”

Regina stiffened. He was coming back to New York? The brunette worried her lower lip as she stayed silent.

“Regina, it would be very rude of you to not allow him a chance to stop by. Especially after you ran out on him the last time he was here.” Cora tisked.

Regina hadn’t seen the man in over a decade. She did not have pleasant memories of the man either. He was much older than her, for one. And second off, she didn’t wish to see the man after what he had done.

“That wouldn’t be a very good idea, mother. I am very busy, and I can’t afford to take time away from work with the semester coming to an end.” Regina swallowed hard. Her throat threatened to close up on her as her mind began to replay the events that caused her to run out on a man nearly twice her age.

“Oh, come off it, Regina. He said he was sorry, right? There’s no need to hold a grudge!” Her mother barked at her.

Regina closed her eyes as tears threatened to fall. “No amount of apologies will ever-”

“Regina! That’s quite enough. I will send him over to meet with you and you will NOT, turn him away. You will be pleasant and presentable! Do I make myself clear?” Cora cut her daughter off.

Regina swallowed her rage and grit her teeth to tightly, she was sure they would break. “ _Mother.”_ Regina warned. “I will NOT be taking time out of MY busy day to entertain a RAPIST!” Regina finally growled out.

“Regina Marie Mills, you will NOT call him that! You know as well as I do that you asked for it! Wearing all those short skirts and tight tops whenever he was around! You can not simply tease a man and expect nothing to come of it!” Her mother barked.

“MOTHER I SAID NO! HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO SAY THAT? I SAID NO AND HE CONTINUED ANYWAY!” Regina lost it. Her rage overtook her senses and she forgot that Emma was only a room away from her. She was physically shaking as she yelled at her mother.

“Calm down now, dear. He said he was sorry and that should be enough to cover it all. You owe him your time because he is coming all this way just to make it up to you. So, do as I say.” Cora warned dangerously.

“I. Will. Not.” Regina bit out.

“He is trying to be nice and has said nothing but good things about you and all you do is push him away! Do you not remember that if it wasn’t for him, you would have never gotten into the school you did? Without his letter of recommendation, you would have been stuck at the local community collage and spent the rest of your pathetic life wasting away working at the diner!”

Regina closed her eyes and gripped her phone tightly. “I KNOW!” She shouted, failing to control her rage as it bubbled under her skin. She felt as if she was going to puke. “You throw that in my face ever single time! I did not ask for him to do that for me! You did! I was fine getting my associate degree at the local college and working my way up! But you had no faith in me! You never had!”

“That’s enough of this nonsense. You will meet with Leo and that’s that!” Cora slammed her foot down and Regina felt instantly powerless. She felt as if she had shrunk back into the five year old little girl her mother would talk down to and control.

“I said no.” Regina nearly whimpered, her rage simmering down as fear overtook her body. She couldn’t face that man. Not after what he had done. Not after everything he had put her through.

“You don’t have a choice. I’ll send him your way as soon as he arrives.”

Regina opened her mouth to speak, but the line went dead. She stood there, naked, wrapped in a towel and feeling hopeless. Her mother didn’t say what day he was coming so she had no clue when to hide. She knew he’d come to her work. He’d even come to her home if he had to. She had nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. She felt her stomach flip.

“Regina?”

A soft voice pulled Regina from her inner thoughts. She turned to find Emma standing at the doorway with a very worried expression.

“Emma…” Regina looked down, not able to meet the woman’s gaze. “How much did you hear?”

“Enough to know that your mother’s a heartless bitch.” Emma looked down, ashamed that she had been listening for a good part of the exchange. When she noticed that Regina was taking a little too long, she thought she’d check up on her. She had come right in the middle of Regina telling her mother that this man she was supposed to meet was a rapist and that got Emma’s blood boiling. She wanted to rip the phone from Regina’s hand and give her mother a piece of her mind, then throw the phone out the nearest window.

Regina wrapped the towel tighter around her thin frame and sat on the edge of Emma’s bed. She felt bile rise up and sit just at the back of her throat.

Emma took careful steps forward until she was right front of the brunette. “Do you wanna talk about it?” She asked.

Regina shook her head.

“Alright.” Emma nodded. “How about you finish getting dressed and I’ll make us a cup of warm tea? Then we can just sit on the couch and watch something?”

Regina nodded. She didn’t trust her voice at the moment. She as too close to breaking down.

Emma reached out and placed a careful hand on Regina’s shoulder. “I’m here for you, okay?” She whispered.

Regina nodded and place her hand on top of Emma’s own. “Thank you.” She choked out. “I’ll be out in a moment.”

Regina nodded and watched as Emma left the room. Once she was sure Emma had gone, she let her tears take her over. She let them fall freely as she dressed herself. She hated the fact that she could still feel his grimy hands on her body. She hated that she could still here his voice in her ear as he told her to stay still. She hated the man. But because he came from wealth and an impressive background, her mother deemed him a perfect fit for her. She was backed into a corner, again. She couldn’t see a way out of this. She could call the cops, but they would laugh at her. She didn’t report him back then. If she did it now, they would only call her a lair and dismiss the case. For the first time in years, Regina felt true fear. 


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The fluff continues. We see a softer side of Regina and the little green monster rears it's ugly head. Our favorite women's weekend is getting better, but we're not out of the woods yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided since the last chapter was a bit harsh, I'd give you more tooth rotting fluff. But again, we are not out of the shit house yet. More things are going to be reveled as the story moves on. Thank you all so much for your kind words and I hope you enjoy this chapter.  
> Much Love,  
> 00psSwanQueen

Emma prepared two cups of black tea as she mulled over what she had heard Regina talking about. She would rip the guy in two if he laid a single hand on _her_ woman. Regina had protected Emma from her past. Now, Emma was ready to protect Regina from her own. She made a mental check list as she brewed the tea and took out some sugar and milk for the tea.

Emma jumped a little as she felt strong arms encircle her waist. She relaxed instantly, knowing it was Regina.

“I wasn’t sure how you liked your tea, so I left it black.” She sighed as she relaxed into Regina’s embrace. She could still feel the woman shaking from her rage earlier and she knew Regina needed her right now.

Regina hummed and pressed a kiss to the back of Emma’s head. “Thank you for the tea.”

Emma turned in Regina’s arms and met her gaze. Her heart clenched at the sight she was greeted with. Regina was void of all make-up, her hair was wet and tossed around but her eyes were red rimmed and slightly puffy. She knew Regina had cried after she left. She didn’t need to be able to hear well to know the woman was going to break down.

Regina ran her fingers through Emma’s hair and offered her a weak smile. “I’m sorry about earlier. I didn’t mean for you to hear all that.”

Emma shook her head. “No need to apologize.” She reached behind herself and handed Regina the cup she had made for her. “I have sugar and milk on the table. And I’m sure I have some honey somewhere. I just gotta look for it.”

Regina pressed a kiss to Emma’s forehead. “Milk and sugar are fine. I don’t really put honey in my tea unless I have a cold.”

Emma nodded and allowed Regina to step away from her. She really didn’t want to let the brunette go. She felt as if Regina needed her near. She could feel this pull towards the brunette.

“Do you still wanna watch that movie?” Emma asked as she sipped her tea.

Regina added a bit of milk and a spoon full of sugar to her tea and nodded. “That would be lovely.”

Emma held out her hand to Regina and smiled like an idiot when the brunette laced their fingers together. She led Regina to her small living room and sat next to her on the couch. She placed her cup on the coffee table and picked up the remote.

“I wasn’t sure what to pick so I decided we could choose together?”

“What did you have in mind?” Regina asked.

“Honestly, I was thinking a classic. Like, Disney?” Emma asked in a nervous tone.

Regina smiled genuinely. “That sounds quite lovely. Pick your favorite.”

Emma closed the Netflix app and opened Hulu. She picked her favorite Disney movie of all time, _“Aladdin”_.

Regina smiled as Emma got comfortable next to her. She opened her arms and the blonde slid into them without a word. Her smile only widened as she heard Emma humming softly to the opening music of the classic cartoon.

About halfway through the movie, Regina had nodded off holding Emma on her lap. She had beckoned the blonde on her lap shortly after the movie had started. She felt an overwhelming sensation of calmness wash over her. Though she knew the impending shit storm heading her way, but she couldn’t help but feel at ease with Emma in her arms. She tried to keep herself from nodding off, but the night’s events took a toll on her mentally. Before she could stop herself, she had fallen asleep with Emma resting against her chest.

Emma felt Regina had fallen asleep and smiled contently. She was glad she could offer as much comfort to the woman as she had to her. She nuzzled her head under Regina’s chin, loving the feeling of the steady rise and fall of her chest. Emma shifted just a bit, careful not to wake the sleeping brunette. She removed her hearing aid because she knew if she fell asleep with it on, her ear would be very sore when she woke. She placed it on the table and nuzzled herself back into Regina’s embrace. She felt her heart swell with love as the brunette wrapped her arms back around the blonde. Emma loved every single second of this. She kissed Regina’s cheek before allowing herself to drift off into sleep.

\-----------------------------SQ--------------------------

Regina startled awake. She felt a heavy presence on her chest and panicked. She nearly threw the person from her until she realized it was Emma. She took a deep calming breath; happy her little jolt didn’t wake the blonde. She rubbed up and down Emma’s back, happy that she could spend this time with her girl. She had never felt so at peace with anyone in her life. She always found it difficult to fall asleep in strange or unfamiliar places. But she felt so at peace that she actually drifted to sleep right there on Emma’s couch.

Regina shifted slightly as her back protested the position she was in. She looked at the clock Emma had hanging on her wall and noticed it was half passed five in the morning. As much as she loved cuddling with the blonde on the couch, her back would hate her if she stayed in her position any longer. But Regina didn’t want to wake the blonde up. She looked so content.

Regina tucked a stray piece of blonde hair behind Emma’s ear and kissed her cheek. The blonde whimpered slightly and cuddled closer to the brunette. Regina chuckled at Emma’s childlike behavior. Regina sighed and wrapped Emma’s legs around her waist. She adjusted Emma so her head would lay on her shoulder. She then wrapped the blonde’s arms around her neck and wrapped her own arms around Emma’s waist. She carefully stood and found her balance as she carried Emma.

Emma huffed at the sudden movement. She groaned and nuzzled closer to Regina’s neck. “Don’t wanna wake up.” She mumbled.

Regina chuckled again. She began to make her way to the blonde’s bedroom as she soothed the sleeping blonde.

“Shhhh, I got you baby.” Regina cooed as she pulled the blankets down and kept Emma balanced on her hip. Once she made a space for Emma, she leaned over the bed and placed the groggy blonde down.

Emma shifted in her sleep. She noticed that she was no longer pressed against the warm body she was content with. She began to whimper and search for the source of heat that was taken from her.

Regina quickly walked to the other side of the bed and joined her girlfriend in the soft bed. She reached for Emma when she heard the soft whimpers falling from her. “It’s okay, baby. I’m right here.” Regina whispered as Emma curled into her side.

Regina pressed kisses to Emma’s crown as she settled the blonde’s worries. She relaxed as Emma went soundly back to sleep. She made sure to keep the blonde close to her as she stared up at the ceiling. Regina suddenly wasn’t very tired. Her mind began to race as her previous conversation with her mother came back to her. She ran her fingers through Emma’s hair as she thought of ways to escape the horrid man coming to see her. She could tell the front desk at the school not to let anyone in to see her besides Emma. But then he’d be waiting for her by the time she got home. She didn’t want to burden Emma with her past trauma. It was one thing to talk through trauma. But her trauma would be coming back and staring her in the face. She’d never ask Emma to be a part of this. Regina thought about just leaving for the week. Renting a hotel room and hiding out. She could call in a favor with the head of the school board and work from home for just a week.

Regina then remembered that she was still down a teacher and she couldn’t leave because she had to cover that class. Due to budget cuts, she couldn’t hire a substitute teacher. The brunette sighed as she drew random patterns on Emma’s back with her fingers. She thought of what more she could do but was drawing a blank. She finally decided to close her eyes and try her best to sleep.

\-----------------------SQ-------------------------

Regina woke again with a start. She sat up quickly, searching for Emma who was no longer resting against Regina’s chest. She looked around the room for a moment before getting out of the bed. She wondered her way back to the kitchen where she found Emma sitting at the table with the day’s wordsearch in front of her. Regina leaned against the doorway to the kitchen and admired her girlfriend. She loved the way Emma stuck out her tongue when she was trying to concentrate or when she was working really hard on something.

Regina pushed herself away from the doorframe and wrapped her arms around Emma’s neck, kissing her cheek. “Morning.” She rasped out.

Emma smiled as soon as she felt Regina’s warmth behind her. She relaxed back into the brunette’s embrace and turned her head to connect their lips in a sweet kiss. “You looked really peaceful, I didn’t wanna wake you up.” Emma nuzzled Regina’s cheek with her nose.

Regina smiled and tilted her head, so her lips were in Emma’s line of sight. She didn’t see the blonde’s hearing aids in, she assumed that Emma was relying on reading her lips.

Emma noticed the gesture and chuckled at Regina’s slightly awkward position. “I can hear you when it’s quiet like this. Especially, if you’re this close.”

Regina smiled and took a seat next to the blonde. “What are you up to this morning?”

Emma placed her pen down on the paper and sighed. “Trying to finish this word puzzle but my brain is not working with me.” She huffed. “Also, it’s one in the afternoon.”

Regina’s eyes widened. Did she really sleep that long? She had never been one to sleep in so late. “God, did I really sleep that long?” She ran her fingers through her wild hair, smoothing it down.

Emma placed a hand on Regina’s shoulder. “You looked like you needed it, babe.”

Regina nodded. “I guess I did.” She shook off her haunting thoughts and turned to face Emma. “What would you like to do with the rest of the day?”

“Well I had hoped we could go out to dinner tonight? I know this really great spot across town the serves the best Italian food!”

Regina smiled and cupped Emma’s cheek. The blonde’s eyes were shining and blown wide by the excitement of going out to dinner that night. Regina nodded. “That sounds lovely.” She bit her lip and thought to what she had packed. She really didn’t plan for such an evening.

Emma saw the shift in Regina’s mood and frowned. “We could stay in if you want? I also know a great place to get takeout from. It’s only a few blocks away from here.”

Regina shook her head. “Oh, sweetheart, I do want to go out to dinner.” She said honestly. “I just did not plan for such an evening and I’m afraid I don’t have anything nice to wear tonight.”

Emma offered Regina one of her signature lopsided grins. “You don’t have to get all dressed up for tonight. It’s honestly just a little hole in the wall I stumbled upon when I was on a case over there. But if you want to dress up, I could take you by your house and we could pick up something nice?”

Regina cupped Emma’s cheek. “You wouldn’t mind going to my house a bit earlier than you thought?”

Emma shook her head. “Nah, I can go pack my bag and we can get ready at your place and then spend the night over there if you want?”

Regina nodded. “Sounds like a plan. Do you want to travel together, or would you rather have your car with you?”

Emma shrugged. “Doesn’t matter to me. But would you rather I take my car? Just so you don’t have to drive me back Sunday night.”

“It’s really not a problem for me. I just want to ensure your comfort as well.”

“I would rather travel with you.”

Regina nodded. “Then it’s settled. Go pack anything you need for you to feel comfortable at my house.”

Emma pecked Regina’s lips and bounded off to her room to pack a bag for the time she’d be spending with Regina. She was excited to spend more time with her girlfriend.

Regina sat at the table for a bit longer before she stood and made her way to the living room. She noticed their cups were still on the table and decided to pick them up. She brought them to the kitchen and noticed a plate and another cup in the sink. She shrugged and started to rinse off the little bit of dishes in the sink.

Emma came back to the kitchen a few minutes later to find Regina washing her dishes. She rolled her eyes and embraced the brunette from behind. “What did I tell you about cleaning?” She teased.

“It’s just a few cups and a plate. It’s no trouble.” Regina placed the last cup on the drying rack and turned in the blonde’s arms. “Did you finish packing already?” She asked.

“I still have a few things left. I always travel light.” Emma shrugged.

Regina rolled her eyes. “Did you pack underwear and socks? Or just snacks, your electronics, and a few t-shirts?”

Emma nudged Regina with her shoulder and pouted. “Oh, come on! I’m not that childish.”

Regina rubbed her nose against Emma’s with a low laugh. “You didn’t answer my question, though.”

Emma bit her lip as she thought about her bag that she had thrown her favorite shirt in, her Gameboy and her hearing aid charger in. “Okay, maybe I forgot underwear, but who needs them?”

Regina let out a joyful laugh at Emma’s remark. “Emma, darling, you are too much.” She laughed and just held Emma to her chest. “Let’s go finish packing your bag.”  
  
“I am 25 years old! I am perfectly capable of packing my own bag.” Emma huffed.

Regina rolled her eyes. “Of course, you are.” She took Emma by the hand and led her back to her room where she found the half open bag with a few things tossed in.

Emma blushed and made her way to her dresser to grab some underwear and her favorite sportsbra. “I got this.” She nodded confidently.

Regina chuckled. “You sure do.” She mused as she packed her own bag up.

\----------------------SQ---------------------

Emma slung her bag over her shoulder as she waited for Regina to meet her at the front door. She was excited to be able to spend so much time with her. Emma was thrown from her thought when a knock came at her door.

She opened it with a smile was she saw it was Mal. “Hey, what’s up?”

Mal offered her a warm smile. “I just wanted to thank you for all your help yesterday. I baked cookies and thought I’d bring some over.”

Emma eyed the plate in question as her smile widened. “Thanks, but it was really no trouble.” She stepped aside and let the woman enter her home.

Mal entered the blonde’s home, setting the plate down on her table. “You were a real life saver for Dean and I. He would have never been able to turn in his schoolwork in on time if you hadn’t help us with the internet cable.”

She placed a hand on Emma’s shoulder. “And you helped me with the freezer and the garbage disposal. Thank you so much, Emma.”

Emma shrugged and offered the woman her signature side smile. “Like I said, it was really no problem. I know it’s tough when you don’t know a lot about stuff. I’m glad I was able to help you out. Figuring stuff out by yourself sucks.”

“Emma, I can’t seem to find where you left your...” Regina stopped as the entered the kitchen and came face to face with another blonde with her hand on _HER_ girlfriend. “Oh, hello.”

Emma couldn’t stop the large grin from taking over her face at the sight of her instantly jealous brunette. “Gina, this is my neighbor, Mal.”

Regina swallowed her jealousy and stuck out her right hand. “Nice to meet you.”

Mal took the intimidating brunette’s hand, offering her a smile. “Nice to meet you as well.” She could feel the intense stare and possessiveness radiating from the woman in front of her. She nodded and rocked on the balls of her feet as she took her hand back. “I better get going. Dean prolly needs my help by now. The poor boy has never been good with math.”

Emma offered the flustered woman a tight smile along with an “I’m sorry” smile. She led the woman out of the apartment and turned to look at Regina with an eyebrow raised. “I never took you for the jealous type.” Emma teased.

Regina shook herself and gave Emma a shocked expression. “I am not the jealous type.”

“Sure, babe. You totally didn’t wanna rip her arm off my shoulder. You might as well have peed on my leg to mark your territory.” Emma laughed as she nuzzled her way into the flustered brunette’s arms.

Regina blushed and wrapped her arms around the blonde tightly. “I don’t like to share.” She nearly growled out.

Emma pressed a kiss to Regina’s cheek. “Neither do I. She’s just a neighbor to me. Her and her son moved in the day before yesterday and they’ve been having some trouble with a few things, so I helped them out. I promise, I’m yours.” Emma reassured the brunette.

Regina nodded and pressed a kiss to Emma’s forehead. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make her uncomfortable.” She sighed.

“It’s fine. I think she understood.”

“Did she bring you cookies?” Regina’s jealousy reared its little green head once again.

Emma chuckled and brought Regina into a gentle kiss. “Yes, as a thank you for me helping her. Nothing more.”

Regina relaxed into the kiss. “Alright, alright.” She rubbed her nose against Emma’s. “I didn’t find your brown boots you told me to. I looked in your closet but all I found was the black knee-high ones.”

“That’s alright, I’ll go look for them. Honestly, they’re prolly somewhere stupid. Like in my bathroom closet or under my bed.” Emma placed another kiss to Regina’s lips and went off in search of her favorite boots.

\--------------------SQ--------------------

Emma leaned back as she listened to the radio. She found that Regina and herself shared a similar music taste. They were both stuck in the eighties and she loved it. They jammed out to Pat Benatar as Regina made her way to the middle of the city.

Emma watched as the city passed by. She loved living in the city, but sometimes she missed the small towns she’d lived in for a good part of her life. She missed the stars at night and the quiet of the night. New York never stopped. Though she was a good part deaf, there were still some sounds that made it through to her. Mostly high-pitched noises where the ones that were clear to her.

Regina admired Emma from the corner of her eye as she drove to her home. She noticed the blonde was completely at ease with her. She put on her playlist and was a bit surprised that Emma started humming along and singing under her breath to the songs. She loved the way Emma watched the world. She had noticed it during their first impromptu date when they went for a walk. She noticed Emma always took in everything so intensely. And Regina found that absolutely beautiful.

About thirty minutes, two traffic jams and several curses, in both English and Spanish, later the woman reached their destination. Regina ran her fingers through her hair as she put her car in park in her driveway. Emma was nearly in tears from laughing at the brunette’s road rage.

“Next time, I’m driving.” Emma laughed as she opened her car door. Her jaw nearly dropped out of place as she took in the town house that belonged to Regina. “Holy shit, Gina!” She gawked.

Regina stepped out of her car and opened the back door to retrieve their bags. “Something wrong?” She asked with slightly concern.

“Nah, nothing wrong but damn. Nice house!” Emma pulled herself out of her gawking and rushed around to help Regina with their bags. “Okay, not trying to be rude here but how the hell do you afford this on a teacher’s salary?”

Regina felt a little uneased about the answer to the question. “It’s a long story. How about we go inside and settle in?”

Emma sensed Regina’s apprehension and nodded. “Alright.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We get a little more insight into Regina's past. Emma starts to get a little frustrated because Regina refuses to talk to her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW// MENTIONS OF RAPE AND EATING DISORDERS!!  
> This chapter is a little more harsher. There is a bit of fluff tossed in here to ease the blow, but this isn't an easy chapter to read. Regina is dealing with her past alone even through Emma really wants to help. Hopefully, our ladies reach a breakthrough and learn to trust and held each other. I'm working on chapter 7 as we speak. Things will start to move more quickly in the coming chapters. There's just a lot to unload here. Thank you all for the kudos and comments. You all are the best.   
> Much Love,  
> 00psSwanQueen

Regina showed Emma where she could place her stuff in her bedroom. She left Emma to wire her chargers and get settled as she went down the hall to her home office. She had received several texts from her mother letting her know what she should be wearing and acting like when the man of her nightmares came to visit her. She sat at her desk where a small stack of papers she needed to grade were waiting for her. She knew she had a few hours to kill before they were going to go out for dinner. So, Regina decided to get a little work done.

As she worked, Emma’s question bounced around in her head.

_“How the hell do you afford this on a teacher’s salary?”_

Regina loathed the answer to that question. She remembered when she had told her mother what had happened between her and that sorry excuse for a man. The brunette closed her eyes as the memory overtook her senses.

_Regina ran into her mother’s study with tears falling down her cheeks. Her hair was disheveled, and her clothes were ripped in several places._

_“Mom!” She cried as she crashed into her mother’s embrace._

_Her mother pulled back in disgust. “Regina Mills! What on earth are you doing here? And what the hell happened to your clothes?”_

_Regina pulled away and swallowed hard. “It was Leo.” She cried._

_Cora rolled her eyes. “What ever do you mean? I thought you were seeing him about a letter of recommendation?”_

_“W-We were talking and then he…he started touching my leg. Wh-When I told him to stop, he didn’t…He…He forced himself on me.” Regina fell to her knees, feeling weak and violated. She cried as she tried to cover herself with the shreds of her clothing._

_Cora stood for a minute and let Regina have her moment. After a beat, she walked up to her daughter and grabbed her by the arm. “Get up.” She hissed, nearly dragging the brunette up to her bathroom. “You look horrible.” She huffed and tossed a damp washcloth at Regina. “Wipe your face while I find you something to wear.”_

_Regina knew her mother was never one to show emotion or affection. She hoped this would be the last time she’d ever have to see that horrible man. She wiped her face clean of the heavy make up her mother had forced her to wear. As she met her eyes in the mirror, she nearly broke down again. She saw the handprints on her throat, on her wrists from where he held her down. She hoped that her mother would never force her to see that disgusting man ever again._

_“Here, put this on and cover you body. Honestly, did you not show any restraint at the restaurant he took you too? You look bloated and fat.” Cora rolled her eyes and brought out her make up from the bathroom cabinet._

_Regina wrapped her arms around her stomach as her mother insulted her. It was always like this. Her mother monitored her weight, what she ate and what she wore. Regina looked over the clothes her mother had brought her and stood in shock. “You d-don’t expect me to go back, do you?”_

_“Do not talk to me like that! Leo called me when I was getting you something to wear and told me what happened. You little slut. You where sitting by him, showing all that skin and batting your eyes. You wanted it. He said you rushed out when you realized what you had let him do and he didn’t even get to talk to you.” Cora rummaged through her make up for some concealer._

_Regina stood there in shock and disgust. “I was wearing what YOU picked out for me! I was on the opposite end of the couch! He moved towards me after I said no! HE HELD ME DOWN! DO YOU NOT SEE THE MARKS ON MY ARMS?!”_

_Cora stomped her way to Regina and slapped her. “You will not raise your voice to me! You are such a lair, Regina!” She shoved the spandex underwear in her daughter’s hands. “Put that damn thing on, get dressed and you are going back to apologize for running out on him!”_

_Regina thought about protesting once again but stopped herself. The sting on her cheek reminded her that her mother had control over her. She dressed in a numb silence. She would never be rid of this man. She would never be rid of her mother. She was trapped. At only sixteen, she couldn’t do much to escape. She thought about leaving her small town in favor of the city. She could be free. She could escape. Two more years. Just two more years…._

“Gina?” Emma pulled Regina from her flashback.

Regina looked up from the paper she was supposed to be grading and met her worried girlfriend’s expression.

“Emma…” Regina cleared her throat. “What’s wrong dear?”

Emma approached Regina slowly and reached out to wipe a stray tear from her cheek. Her girlfriend had a haunted look glued to her face. A look she recognized from the mirror when she would wake up to nightmares of her own past.

Regina hadn’t even realized that she had been crying. She leaned into Emma’s soft touch, glad to be pulled from such a painful memory. She felt Emma run her fingers through her hair and push it out from where it had fallen into her face.

“Are you okay?” Emma asked.

Regina nodded. “I’ll get there.” She glanced at the clock on her computer screen and noticed it was still quite early.

“I got everything hooked up in your room. And I fixed your lamp’s switch. The tape you had on that thing was nasty.” Emma tried to joke.

Regina offered Emma a tight smile. “Sorry, darling. I’m a little out of it right now.”

Emma nodded. “Do you want to talk about it?” She asked carefully.

Regina shook her head. “Not right now.” She sighed.

Emma’s stomach chose then to growl loudly. The blonde blushed and wrapped her arms around her midsection. “Sorry.”

Regina snapped out of her haze at her girlfriend’s need. She stood and wrapped Emma in a tight hug. “There’s no need to be sorry for being hungry, darling. How about I get you something to snack on?”

Emma shrugged. “There’s no point in eating now if we’re gunna go out in a few hours. It’s okay.”

Regina tisked at the blonde. “Now, sweetheart, it’s really no trouble to make you a snack. If you’re hungry now, you can have something small and still eat dinner with me later.”

Emma stomach clenched as her hunger grew. She hadn’t eaten anything since the toast she made that morning. Emma nodded against Regina’s chest, figuring her girlfriend need a distraction from whatever crossed her mind. “Alright, a snack wouldn’t be so bad.”

Regina smiled and pecked Emma’s lips before intertwining their fingers and leading her downstairs to her kitchen.

Emma took a seat on one of the bar stools near the counter of the large kitchen. She watched as Regina moved through the room as if she was walking on air. She loved watching Regina do small things. When they would facetime, Emma would just watch as Regina would type out emails or make dinner. She would admire the look of concentration on the brunette’s face and the spark of joy when Regina would show her one of her hobbies. But the look from earlier unsettled Emma’s stomach. She knew that look much too well. She knew that whatever Regina was dealing with, was a big deal. It was creeping into her mind whenever she had a still moment. Emma wanted to help her, but she knew she couldn’t force Regina to talk. That had never worked for her in the past when the social workers she dealt with tried it on her. She knew she had to let Regina come to her on her own terms. So, until then, Emma would provide distractions when she could and comfort when needed.

Regina rummaged through her cabinets for something that Emma would like. She made a mental note to shop for more foods she’d seen around Emma’s house. She would never buy those things for herself, but she would keep them around for when Emma was there. She found some white bread that she had bought when she made finger food for her classes a few days ago and some swiss and cheddar cheese. She decided to make Emma a grilled cheese with tomatoes and bacon. She sliced the bacon and placed it in a pan to start the cooking and would use the leftover grease to make the grilled cheese in. As she cooked, another memory crashed into her mind. She closed her eyes and hoped to god, she could control her emotions.

_Regina was free. She was just about done with her second year of school and her twentieth birthday was just around the corner. She had escaped that horrible man and her mother had no more control over her. She had agreed to keep her mouth shut about his wondering hands because he had basically paid for her schooling. He even went as far as to give her a huge sum of money to help her through her years in school. She was a smart woman and put half in her bank and the other half in saving to gain interest over the years._

_She was texting her sister about her birthday plans and how she wanted to go home to see her._

_“Zelena, I don’t care that she’s our mother. After what she’s done, I don’t want to see her.” Regina rolled her eyes as she talked on the phone with her sister._

_“Sis, she’s apologized a million times and she hasn’t forced you to see the man. She misses you. You don’t come home for the holidays, or during your breaks. She just wants to see you. You don’t even have to stay at the house. I’ll rent you a room at the inn and pay for it myself.” Her sister pleaded._

_“Fine. I’ll head over for a little bit. But if she starts shit, I’m leaving.”_

_“You have every right to. I’ll see you soon little sis.”_

_“Bye Zelena.” Regina hung up the phone and started to pack for her weekend in her hometown. She hadn’t been there since she left after she graduated high school. She wasn’t really looking forward to it, but she really did miss her sister. And she couldn’t keep asking her sister to take time off of work to visit her in the city. Regina finished packing and laid down on her bed to get some sleep before her final exam in the morning._

_The weekend of her birthday was off to a good start. Her sister had taken her out and they got to catch up on recent events in each of their lives. The second day was the day she was going to meet with her mother. Her mother had planned a small party for her birthday and Zelena had convinced her to show up for longer than just a few minutes. She had reluctantly, allowed her sister to drag her into her childhood home and meet with the few people that had come to wish her well._

_“Regina!” Cora exclaimed. “It’s been so long!” She pulled her daughter in for a stiff hug and kissed her cheek._

_Regina felt awkward hugging her mother in front of the people that were around. Her mother had never been very physically affectionate in the past and Regina wasn’t used to such an embrace. She hugged her stiffly and broke the embrace quickly._

_“It’s good to see you too, mother.” Regina nodded at her mother._

_“There is someone here that is dying to meet you!” Her mother grabbed her wrist and basically dragged her to the back of the house._

_“Mother, let me go.” Regina struggled._

_Cora turned and gripped Regina’s wrist tighter. “That’s enough out of you.” She made sure there was no one lingering around as she looked her daughter up and down. “You’ve put on quite a bit of weight since you’ve been gone. Honestly, did you just forget everything I’ve taught you?” She sighed and began to fix Regina’s clothes._

_“Mother, that’s enough.” Regina swallowed. She had struggled enough with her weight and body image over the past few years. She had tried to keep the weight off, but the high demand of school had kept her from going to the gym regularly._

_“Do shut your mouth, Regina.” Her mother mused. “Now, stand up straight, smile and say hello.” Her mother grabbed her by the wrist again, despite Regina’s struggling. She dragged her to the backdoor where the person stood._

_Regina gasped and tried to pull her arm away from her mother. She panicked and lost her voice entirely._

_“Hello Regina. It’s so nice to see you again.” Leopold stepped forward and took Regina’s hand, kissing the back of it._

_Regina felt as if she was going to be sick. Bile rose up her throat and settled at the back of it. She swallowed hard and smiled tightly at the man before her._

_“I’ll leave you both to catch up.” Cora dismissed herself and left Regina alone with the man who had ripped her innocence away from her._

_Regina tried to step back away from his reach, but he grabbed her wrist and pulled her back towards her. “Enjoying the money I gave you?” He husked in her ear._

_Regina couldn’t form words. She felt disgusted by the man’s presence. She wanted to hurl and run as far away as her legs could take her. She tried to squirm out of his hold, but he simply tightened his grip._

_“Why are you trying to run from me? We both know you missed me.” He reached down and grabbed her behind as he pulled her flush against his chest._

_Regina couldn’t let it happen again. She mustered up all her strength and kneed him in the groin. Once his grip faltered, she ran away. She ignored her mother’s calls and her sister’s calls as she ran from the house. She ran all the way back to the inn she was staying at and packed her bag quickly. She turned her phone off and left that same day back to the city. She had tears streaming down her face as she drove as fast as she could. Regina slammed her fist on her stirring wheel. She should have known her mother would pull this stunt. She should have known she couldn’t trust the woman. She would never change._

Regina shook her head as she flipped Emma’s grilled cheese. She wiped at her cheeks as she, once again, failed to control her emotions. She knew these memories were coming back because that sorry excuse for a man would be coming to see her. She was almost thirty-two and she still held fear for her mother and that man. She could handle herself. She had for many years. But she couldn’t break this hold they both had on her. She still watched her weight very closely; never letting herself eat empty carbs. And if she did, she would tack on extra miles to her morning run at the gym.

Emma watched as Regina’s mood dampened. She knew Regina was lost in her past as she noticed her motions started becoming robotic. Emma gave the brunette her space. Because she knew if she were to touch or startle Regina when she was lost in her past, it could cause her to lash out; depending how bad the memory was.

Emma thanked Regina went she had placed the plate in front of her. She reached out for Regina and caught her shoulder. “Gina?”

Regina turned and saw Emma’s worried expression. She cupped the blonde’s cheek and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I’m okay. I promise.”

Emma could feel her inner lie detector blaring that Regina was not okay. She swallowed hard and pulled Regina in for a long hug. She stayed silent, respecting Regina’s wish not to talk about what was bothering her. But she needed to let the brunette know that she was there for her. She needed to reassure Regina that she was not going to leave her alone with whatever was going on.

Regina held Emma to her chest, enjoying the calmness that came when she had her in her arms. She buried her nose in the top of Emma’s hair and let her scent relax her.

Emma felt those three words bubbling up in her chest. She pushed the words down because she didn’t want to scare the brunette off. She knew the time would come eventually, and there was no need to rush through it. She nuzzled her nose into Regina’s neck. She let Regina draw from her strength and offered her comfort in the only way she could. She thought back to the previous night at how calm Regina was when she cared for Emma. Emma thought about that for a moment before nudging Regina with her nose.

“Stay with me while I eat?”

Regina looked down to meet Emma’s pleading eyes and nodded. She couldn’t deny Emma even if she tried. She was hopelessly falling for the woman and she didn’t care. Regina took the seat next to Emma as the blonde dug into the sandwich.

“Thank you for making this for me. It’s really awesome.” Emma hummed as she took another bite. “I would have never thought to add tomato and bacon to a grilled cheese.”

Regina chuckled to herself as Emma tore into the simple meal. She grabbed a napkin from the other end of the counter and wiped a bit of cheese from Emma’s cheek. “I do hope your manners are better when we go out.” She joked.

Emma smiled at Regina and nodded. “I promise to get sauce everywhere when we go out!”

Regina laughed, grateful for the distraction from her haunting thoughts. She wiped the other side of Emma’s mouth and kissed her clean cheek. “You eat like a child.”

Emma shrugged. “You picked me. And you fed me. So, you’re never getting rid of me.”

“I would never get rid of you.” Regina deadpanned. She couldn’t imagine not having Emma in her life. The woman was becoming everything to her.

Emma smiled at Regina’s words. She pushed the second half of her sandwich towards Regina. “You should have some too. You didn’t eat at all after you woke up.”

Regina eyed the sandwich with hunger. She knew she shouldn’t eat it because she was more than likely going to eat her day’s worth of calories in a single meal that night. She politely shook her head.

“I’m alright darling. I’ll eat at the restaurant tonight.”

Emma eyed Regina closely. “You sure?” Emma asked once more.

Regina felt her stomach clench at the thought of those unnecessary calories. She was hungry, but she couldn’t eat that. Her mother’s words slammed into her head as she thought about just taking one bite to sooth Emma’s mind.

_“A lady shows restraint with food. You don’t wish to become fat, do you?”_

Emma took the plate back from Regina when she saw the mood change again. She nudged Regina with her shoulder and leaned into her shoulder.

Regina wrapped her arm around Emma as she fought with her thoughts. “I’m okay. You can finish your meal and we’ll start getting ready soon.”

Emma nibbled on the last half of her sandwich as Regina held her. She was becoming a bit frustrated that Regina wouldn’t talk to her. She wanted to help and wanted to give the woman some space, but it was also starting to get on her nerves. She had come clean about her past trauma and trusted Regina with that information. She felt as if Regina didn’t trust her enough to let her in and that hurt Emma greatly.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Date night is here. Secrets are exposed and wounds are reopened. Fears are shared and confort is given.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got really emotional writing this chapter. I hope it lives up to your expectations. Updates might start coming a bit more slowly as life is constantly getting in the way of my writing time. But i promise, I will do my best to conitue this story. I have so much planned for them. Until then, enjoy this chapter.  
> Much Love,  
> 00psSwanQueen

Regina readied herself in her bathroom as Emma did the same in her bedroom. She did her best to conceal the dark circles that were forming under her eyes from the added stress lately. She had changed her dress at least four times in the past twenty minutes because she could see her small stomach bulge with each dress. She huffed and mentally told herself she couldn’t eat any carbs tonight. She already decided on a salad for evening and she’d have to run ten miles the next time she went to gym. Regina pulled out her old set of spandex underwear and huffed as she pulled them up her legs. When she was satisfied with her look, she opened the bathroom door and stepped out. She stopped dead in her tracks as she came face to face with Emma’s bare back.

Emma was facing away from Regina as she brought her shirt out of her bag. Regina admired Emma’s toned arms and back as she moved. With each movement her muscles rippled under her skin and made Regina’s throat uncomfortably dry. In the dim light of her room, she could barely make out a few scars that littered the porcelain skin of the blonde’s back. Regina wanted nothing more than to kiss each and every one of them as she caressed Emma’s sides. She cleared her throat to announce her presence.

Emma turned around to face Regina. She was flawless. Emma’s  eyes raked over Regina body as she stood before her in a skintight black dress the ended just above her knees. “Wow.” Emma mused. “You look stunning.” She smiled.

Regina tucked a piece of hair behind her ear . “Thank you.”

Emma grabbed her shirt and pulled it over her head before making her way over to the brunette. She embraced her and pressed a quick kiss to her cheek. “I’m almost ready. I just gotta  untangle this rat’s nest I have on my head.” Emma joked.

Regina snored a bit. She pulled the hair tie out of Emma’s hair and ran her fingers through it. “It’s not all that bad. I’ll wait for you downstairs, darling.”

Emma nodded and entered the restroom to finish up her hair and do a little make up.

Regina grabbed her clutch and her phone from her nightstand before walking down the stairs and waiting for Emma.

Regina’s mouth hung open as she watched Emma walk down the stairs. Her hair was curled to perfection and she had just a slightest bit of make up on her face. She wore  tight black jeans and a deep red  turtleneck sweater. 

“You like?” Emma asked.

“You look amazing, dear.” 

“You all ready to go?” Emma asked.

Regina nodded and handed Emma her keys. “I’ll let you drive tonight since you know where the place is.” Regina turned to her closet by the door and grabbed her black wool trench coat.  Emma helped her slip it on and the two women walked out of the house.

\------------------SQ-------------------

Regina sat across from Emma in the small restaurant.  She lifted the menu and started looking for something she could eat without  regret. She paled when she noticed the place didn’t have salads on the menu. 

“Emma, they don’t serve salads here?” 

Emma looked up from her menu and shook her head. “Nah, that’s why I like coming here.  It a pasta paradise.” Emma smiled until she saw the horrified look on Regina’s face. She scrunched her  eyebrows together and studied the woman. She knew Regina ate very healthily. She would remove the top bun from her sandwiches and hardly ever ate anything fried  or smothered in grease. “They do have a great grilled chicken parmesan though.” Emma offered.

Regina  looked over the menu again. She swallowed her fear and nodded. “I think I’ll take that then.”

Emma hid behind her menu as she let out a silent huff of frustration. Regina’s refusal to talk was weighing heavily on her. She knew that she needed to give the brunette time but damn, ever since the conversation with her mother, Regina had been very different. She was still kind and cared for Emma, but she was hiding. Emma hadn’t seen her smile genuinely since that night and she dodged Emma questions. Emma felt hurt and felt as if she had given Regina her trust, but it was not returned. She started doubting herself. Maybe she had misjudged the situation and put too much trust in the brunette. Maybe Regina was just using her like everyone else in her life. She was startled out of her mental spiral when the waiter came to take their orders. Emma ordered dryly and gave her menu back to the man. Once he had left, she avoided Regina’s eyes.

“Emma?” Regina called to the blonde.

Emma ignored the brunette and sulked in her head as the thoughts of being used again overtook her. She crossed her arms over her chest and sat back . 

“Emma, what’s wrong?” Regina tried again.

Emma lifted her gaze and shrugged. “Nothing.” She deadpanned.

Regina felt as if she had been hit in the chest at Emma’s change in mood.  She tried to reach out for Emma , but the blonde stood and excused herself to the restroom.  Regina recoiled in on herself as if she had touched a flame.  Her heart fell into the pit of her stomach as she watched the blonde leave the table. She felt tears gather  in her eyes. 

_ “No one will ever want you, Regina. You’re too much trouble.” _

Her mother’s words rang around in her head as she felt the first of many tears fall down her cheek. When the waiter came with their plates and Emma hadn’t returned, Regina asked the man for takeout boxes. The date was ruined, and Regina was sure it was all her fault. She could never truly find happiness. Any time she did find it, it was ripped from her so harshly. She brought out a pen and notecard from her clutch and wrote Emma a note. She placed her keys on the box of takeout along with the note and stood. She paid for their meals and left the restaurant on foot.

Emma had to remove herself from the situation before she blew up on Regina. She knew she needed to calm herself in order to be there for her girlfriend. She needed to hold herself back and let Regina come to her. It wasn’t about her feelings right now. It was about Regina’s feelings. She needed to give her space and not expect the brunette to just spill her darkest secrets at the drop of a hat. She fixed her hair in the mirror and cursed herself for taking so long. Their food was probably already at the table. She adjusted her clothing and walked back out to the dining area. 

Emma was taken back when she noticed their table was empty and there w ere two boxes of takeout in the center. She picked up the small notecard and read what Regina wrote.

_ “Emma, _

_ I’m sorry to have wasted your time. I understand why you wouldn’t want to stay with me. I am  _ _ closed off and more broken than you can imagine. You deserve someone better than me. Take my car home. I’ll manage my own way home. I’ll pick up my car from you tomorrow and drop off you stuff _ _. If you want, I can just leave it in your car, and you don’t have to see me again. Goodbye Miss Swan.  _

_ Regina _ _.” _

Emma threw the note down and picked up the keys Regina had left. She left the takeout on the table and rushed out of the restaurant. She searched for signs of Regina and when she saw the brunette walking down the street with her head down, she ran at full sprint towards her. She ran as fast as her feet could take her with tears streaming down her cheeks. 

“REGINA!” She called out as she ran.

Regina’s head snapped up when she saw the blonde barreling towards her. She stopped walking and turned to face Emma ful ly . She wasn’t expecting Emma to crash into her, but that’s what happened. Emma wrapped her arms around Regina tightly and held her close as she nearly knocked her off her feet.

Regina  wrapped her arms around the shaking blonde and just held her. She felt the blonde’s tears soak her chest as she cradled Emma’s head to her.  She tried to pull out of the embrace to meet Emma’s eyes, but the blonde just held onto her tighter.

“Don’t you dare just walk away from me !” Emma sobbed. “Don’t you dare break up with me over a note and then leave me with your car!”

Regina  let her tears overtake her. She buried her face in Emma shoulder and cried to her heart’s content. She cursed herself for leaving that note , for leaving Emma without good reason. She fisted the back of Emma’s sweater as she vowed silently to herself  that she would never let this woman go again. 

Emma pulled away enough to meet Regina’s glossy eyes . She took Regina’s face in her hand and brought their lips together i n a longing kiss . Emma poured ever y ounce of feeling she had for the brunette into that kiss.

Regina’s breath was taken away by the fierce kiss Emma locked her into. She wrapped her arms around Emma’s neck and gave herself fully to the woman in front of her. She  felt more tears flood her vision  as she kissed Emma back with everything she had. 

Emma pulled away from the kiss when her chest burned with the need for air. She kept Regina’s face between her hands as she wiped the brunette’s tears away with her thumbs. “I’m sorry I made you feel like I didn’t want you. I want you. I want all of you.  Every last piece of you, I want it.” Emma confessed. “I want you flaws, you anger, your happiness, your defeat, your depression, your pain and your love. I want all of you.” 

Regina choked on her words . She swallowed against the lump in her throat and kissed Emma’s forehead.  “ I’m sorry I hid from you. I’m sorry I left. I’m so broken, Emma. You have no idea what you’re asking  for when you say you want all of me.”

Emma grabbed Regina by the shoulders and shook her slightly. “Regina Mills, I do know what I’m asking for.” She looked up to the sky, asking for strength as she readied herself to say the words. “Look at me.” She asked. Once Regina met Emma’s eyes, Emma cupped her cheek gently. “I love you.” She whispered.

Regina  broken down once again. She cried and held Emma’s hand to her cheek. “Emma…” She sobbed.

Emma shook her head. “You don’t have to say it back, but I want you to know that I love you, Regina. I love all of you.”

Regina wiped her tears and met Emma’s eyes once again. “You don’t know me as well as you think.” 

“Then allow me to spend  as much time with you as you’d allow me to. Allow me to get to know you. Please, for the love of Christ, don’t end this. Don’t walk away from this; from me.” Emma sobbed.

Regina could hear her mother’s voice bouncing around in her head. She met Emma’s red rimmed and glossy eyes and for the first time in her life, she shut that voice up and nodded. She kissed Emma with everything she had left. She threw out all her fears and gave herself fully to Emma in that moment. She felt this weight fly off her back as she silently vowed to share herself with this wonderful woman. 

Emma held Regina for as long as she needed after their kiss came to an end. She felt Regina shivering as the cold started to creep into their bones. 

“Come on, babe. Let’s get the hell out of this cold weather, pick up something to eat and head home. You’ll catch a nasty cold if we stay out here any longer.” Emma took Regina’s hand in her own and led her to where they had parked the car. She opened Regina’s door for her and walked around to get into the driver's seat. They drove back to Regina’s home in a comfortable silence. Emma made a pitstop at the little café they met at and ordered them something to eat when they got home. Emma gave Regina a cup of warm jasmine tea when she entered the car. 

Regina thought about the way Emma had fought for her. The way she  poured her heart out to her. Never in her life had someone chased her; had wanted her so much that they chased her down and nearly tackled her. No one had ever fought for her . Everyone used her in one way or another. But Emma wanted nothing more than to just be with her. She hated herself for closing herself off from Emma. 

Once the two women had reached the house, they entered in silence. Emma took their food to the kitchen and plated the meals.  She brought the food to the dining area where Regina sat. Regina thanked her for the meal as she sat next to the brunette.

Emma watched as Regina ate slowly. She hoped she didn’t overstep by telling Regina that she had loved her. Regina didn’t say it back, but Emma was confident enough that it really didn’t bother her. She knew th at if Regina didn’t feel the same way, she would be on her way back to her apartment right now. 

After the two had finished their meals, Regina offered Emma the shower first. Emma thanked her and allowed her to clean up the kitchen as she showered. 

Emma felt like a new person after she emerged from the shower. Regina’s bathroom was amazing, and she didn’t have to wait half an hour for the water to heat up. Also, the water didn’t go cold as ice after ten minutes. Emma thoroughly enjoyed her shower. She walked into Regina’s bedroom towel drying her hair and was greeted with the brunette laying on the bed with her back against the headboard. She had her thick framed reading glasses on and was flipping through papers she assumed she was grading. She never looked so beautiful, in Emma’s opinion. Regina’s hair was pulled up in a messy bun and her makeup was wiped off. She was wearing an oversized band t-shirt and no pants or shorts, from what Emma could see. She was perfect in Emma’s eyes. 

Emma walked over to the opposite end of the bed and sat down next to Regina. She pressed a quick kiss to her cheek as she leaned against the headboard with her. “Whatcha up to?” Emma asked  as she made herself comfortable.

Regina shifted a bit closer to the blonde and pecked her cheek. “Grading the fourth graders’ math homework.” She rolled her eyes as she marked several questions wrong. “I’m going to have to go over their times tables with them again. They are only a number or two off from the correct answer, but I don’t think they have grasped the concept yet.”

Emma nodded and looked over the paper . She noticed a few mistakes  and pointed out the few Regina had missed. Regina thanked Emma for the second set of eyes.

“I think I should put these away f or the night . My eyes and my mind are exhausted.” Regina huffed and gathered the papers around herself. She placed them on her nightstand and shifted closer to Emma. 

Emma wrapped an arm around Regina as she rested against her chest. She ran her  scratched the back of Regina’s head as she thought about what the night’s events had uncovered. 

Regina took a deep breath and focused on Emma’s fingers massaging her scalp. She thought about the events that led them to this point in the night and mentally kicked herself for the millionth time that night. 

“I was raped.” Regina choked out.

Emma nearly shot up in shock at Regina’s admission. She closed her eyes as she took in what Regina had said, calming her boiling blood and  holding her tongue form asking the thousands of questions she had for the brunette.

Regina took a deep breath, taking Emma’s silence as an invitation to continue.  “I was sixteen when it happened. He was nearly twice my age, but my mother thought it would be good idea for me to get with him because he was very well off.” She swallowed passed the lump that settled in her throat and continued. “When I told her what he had done, she slapped me and called me a lair. She told me that I had asked for it and that I was a slut.”

Emma tightened her hold on Regina. Her anger only grew larger. Now she  _ really  _ wanted to throttle  Regina’s mother and the man that had dared to touch Regina is such a way. 

Regina placed her hand on Emma’s lap to calm the blonde and to ground herself from drifting back into her memories.  “You asked me how I afforded a house like this on my salary. It was because if him . He gave me quite a bit of money to help me through collage and to keep my mouth shut.” 

It took every ounce of Emma’s willpower not to forced Regina to give her a name and an address so she could go and kill the man. 

“I was smart with the money and put half into a savings account to gain interest as I finished school. I’ve been living off the interest since I graduated and haven’t even put a dent in what he gave me.” Regina swallowed hard once again. “He’s coming back. I haven’t seen him since I was twenty. But my mother called me the other night to tell me that he wants to see me and….” She choked back her tears. “Emma, I’m scared.”

Now it was Emma’s turn to take on the role of caregiver. She lifted Regina onto her lap and cradled her close. She tucked Regina’s head under her chin and rocked her slightly.  Emma’s squeezed her eyes shut and took a few deep breaths. 

“He’s not  gunna hurt you again. I promise. I will escort you to and from work if I  have to . I will check in with you every hour and take my lunch breaks with you. You can even come stay at my apartment if that will make you feel safer. Or I can stay here. It doesn’t matter to me. But I will  _ NOT _ let him touch you  _ EVER _ again.” Emma vowed.

Regina shook her head. “I can’t ask you to do that. I can’t ask you to change your whole schedule for me.”

“You’re not asking.” Emma said sternly. “I’m offering. I’m telling you I will do it of my own freewill.” She lifted Regina’s face to meet her own. “All you have to do is say yes. Please, allow me to do this for you.”

Regina nodded. “Okay, I’ll let you in.” She felt exposed beyond her limits. She never had let anyone in the way she let Emma in. Noone outside her family knew about her and that man. She would never show this weakness to anyone else. She cuddled closer to Emma and gripped onto her for dear life. 

Emma could tell it took a lot out of Regina to tell her what had happened and to allow her to be there for her. Emma decided she would share something with Regina that she had never shared with anyone before. 

“Did I ever tell you how I became deaf?” Emma asked as she stroked Regina’s back.

Regina shook her head against Emma’s chest. 

“I was eight when it happened.” Emma closed her eyes as the memory flooded back to her. “I was at my fourth foster home. I believe they were the Smiths or was it the Clark family?” Emma thought for a moment. “I don’t remember really. I went to so many foster homes, I lost track of all their names.” She shook her head and smiled as Regina started to loosen up in her arms. “I like to believe I wasn’t that bad of a kid. I listened when the parents would tell me what to do. And I really didn’t learn how to talk until I was almost six. The families I was with preferred that I say quiet, so they didn’t teach me. I learned most of my vocabulary at school.” Emam shrugged. “So, I had just moved to this small town with a new family. They had like four or five other kids in the house with them and I was the youngest out of them all. It was a hard life. I didn’t have a room of my own. Hell, I didn’t even have a room to share. They had me on the couch in the living room.”

Regina laced her fingers with Emma’s as the blonde took a shaky breath. 

Emma smiled down at Regina and kissed her crown before she continued. 

“I was with them for about three months before I made a mistake. I was playing around with one of the older kids and we were running through the house. Well, we knocked over a lamp and it broke.” Emma took another deep breath and closed her eyes. “The mother got pissed. The older kid blamed it all on me and told her that they were trying to stop me from running. The mother didn’t punish the older kid, just me. She beat me senseless. She hit me with the cord of the lamp and just kept slapping me across my face. I later found out she had severe anger issues and a bad drinking problem. The hits I took to my head damaged my eardrums and my eyesight. My eyes were not too bad. They were able to repair my left eye and my right eye only need a few stitches under it. My eardrums were the worst of it all. My right one was beyond repair and my left one took a 75% loss of hearing.” Emma opened her eyes when she felt the tears build up behind them. “I was never the same after that. It was hard enough to get adopted as a “normal” kid. Now that I had a disability, no one ever wanted me. I was tossed around even more than before. There was only one family that really helped me. It was the last foster home I went to. I was fifteen by that time. I had been through hell and back and was very closed off. They still took me in and showed me what real love was. But I was too damaged to let them in fully. Even though they bought me my first pair of hearing aids, I still betrayed them. I stole their savings and ran. They never reported me or tried to come after me. I recently contacted them again. I paid them back the money I stole and apologized for the little piece of shit I was. They really didn’t deserve the pain I caused them.” Emma smiled as she thought of the family that really loved her. She didn’t know it back then, but she sure as hell knew it now. 

Regina stirred in Emma’s arms. She adjusted herself so she could embrace the blonde. “I’m sorry you had to go through that.”

Emma hugged Regina back and shook her head. “Don’t be. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be the person I am today. Even though my life started off shitty and I went through some terrible times, they made me the tough, hardheaded person I am today.”

Regina felt honored that Emma had shared that piece of her life with her. She pulled out of the hug and cupped Emma’s cheek gently. “All those experiences helped you turn into the amazing, wonderful, beautiful person that I love with all that I am.”

Emma’s felt her heart stop at Regina’s words. She felt a fresh wave of tears flood her vision as she connected their lips in a slow deep kiss. “I love you, Regina.” Emma whispered against the brunette’s lips.

“I love you too, Emma.” Regina whispered back before connecting their lips once again.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The weekend date is over and now they have to deal with the doom that is headed their way. Emma keeps her promise. Regina learns to trust. Their lives start to get more intertwined with each other as they battle past demons together. And as always, there is fluff.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello my darlings! I have some good news and bad news. The good news is that I have so much more to add to this story! Bad news is that updates will be slower. Work and life love to get in the way of my writing process...BUT! I'm doing my best to find the time to write and bring you more SwanQueen fluff! I promise a crazy amount of Fluff is on the way. We just have to get through this difficult time with out ladies. Until next time, I'm sending all of you so much love and good vibes.  
> Much Love,  
> 00psSwanQueen <3

Regina took her time admiring Emma as they cuddled together on her bed watching some movie, she had absentmindedly chosen. She studied Emma’s face in a new light after what she had told her. The brunette noticed the small scars under her eyes and above her eyebrows. Regina also noticed the other little scars on her arms and neck. Regina held her tongue when Emma stretched, and an angry red scar was revealed on her side. She wanted to ask the blonde to tell her the stories behind them. But thought against it. She knew that those scars didn’t come from happy memories and she didn’t want to make Emma relive anymore of her past.

Regina watched as Emma stood and excused herself to the restroom. She was left alone with her thoughts as she replayed the evening in her mind. She had told Emma something she had never told anyone else. She opened herself to the blonde and was still in shock at Emma’s reaction. Emma didn’t call her a liar or tell her she was mistaken. She even offered to protect her; something her mother never did for her. Regina felt all these emotions build up again and cursed herself for it. She had just settled down and now she was on the verge of tears again. She wiped her eyes harshly and adjusted her position on the bed.

Emma emerged from the bathroom and flopped herself next to Regina on the bed. She was hardly paying attention to the movie that was going on in the background. She laid her head in Regina’s lap and just looked up at her. Her rage boiled just beneath her skin as she thought of the scumbag that dared to put his hands on her. She thought of what she could do to ease the situation and get him as far away from her as possible. The rational part of her mind knew that she just needed to be there for Regina and only step in when she allowed her to. But the irrational part of her mind wanted to find the guy, beat him to a bloody pulp, castrate him and leave the remains for the wolves.

Emma’s racing thoughts were halted when she felt Regina’s fingers find their way into her hair. She hummed in approval as the brunette massaged her scalp.

“You’re gunna put me to sleep if you keep that up.” Emma mumbled.

Regina smiled as she bent over and kissed Emma’s forehead. “Do you want me to stop?”

Emma shook her head and leaned further into Regina’s soft touches.

Regina looked down at the blonde in her lap and continued to run her fingers through her hair. She noticed Emma still had her hearing aids on and slowly went to remove them. She remembered when Emma told her once that she had fallen asleep with them on and couldn’t wear them the next day because of how sore her ears were. Regina began to remove one of them when Emma’s hand came up to stop her.

“Oh, I’m sorry just...”

Emma turned and faced Regina with a smile. “Let me show you how.” Emma smiled and guided Regina’s hand back to her aid. “You have to turn them off first, otherwise I get this terrible screeching sound. It’s like mic feedback.” Emma explained. She guided Regina finger to the back of the aid where a small button was. “Feel that?”

Regina nodded. She was honored Emma was showing this to her. Something that was so simple, made her feel like Emma trusted her more and more. She hated that she hid from Emma but happy that Emma understood to a certain extent.

“You hold that down for a few seconds and it turns them off. It’s also how you turn them on.” Emma let Regina hold the little button down and the aid turned off. She then nodded at Regina to take it off. “After you take it off, you just place it the holder there. They’ll charge overnight and be ready for me tomorrow.”

Regina took care to place the aid in the charger as Emma turned to the other side and let Regina take off the other. Regina made sure to do everything carefully. Her touch was soft as if Emma was made of glass. Once both aids were safely charging, Regina returned to massaging Emma scalp.

Emma laced her fingers with Regina’s free hand. She closed her eyes and before she knew it, she was out like a light. At some point in the night, Regina had shifted them. Emma was now cuddling Regina close to her chest. Emma felt Regina stir slightly and woke up. She could hardly see but she could see Regina’s form struggling. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and tried to make out what was going on. The light flowing in from Regina’s bedroom window helped Emma see the pinched look on her girlfriend’s face. Emma pressed a kiss to Regina’s cheek, concluding that Regina was stuck in a nightmare. Her chest was rising and falling rapidly, and her eyes were squeezed shut. Emma gathered Regina in her arms and hushed her gently.

“It’s okay Gina.” Emma whispered into Regina’s ear. “I’m here. It’s just a nightmare.”

Regina’s eyes shot open at the sound of Emma’s voice. She nearly jumped out of Emma’s hold as she came back to the conscious world. Once she realized that she was in her own bed with Emma, whom loved her and would never hurt her, and not back at her childhood home where Leopold could take advantage of her she relaxed a little. She still struggled a bit to get out of Emma’s hold because she was still feeling the aftermath of her flashback/nightmare.

Emma released Regina when she felt her struggle. She propped herself up against the headboard and turned on the lamp that sat on her side’s nightstand. “Gina, are you okay?”

Regina sat up and ran her hand through her messy hair. She swallowed and took a few deep breaths. “I’m okay.” She choked out. She cleared her throat and met Emma’s worried expression. “I just…”

Emma held out her hand for Regina to take. “It’s okay. You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. Just know, I’m here for you.”

Regina took Emma’s hand and nodded. “I’m sorry I woke you. I haven’t had these nightmares for years, but I guess with everything going on they just…” Regina sighed and scooted closer to Emma.

Emma wrapped her arm around Regina loosely incase the brunette wanted to move away. She pressed a kiss to Regina’s crown and just held her.

“I saw him.” Regina swallowed. “He was here, and I couldn’t find you. I called for help, but he just laughed at me.”

Emma nearly growled at the thought of him touching Regina again. She tightened her hold on the brunette slightly and shook her head. “That won’t happen. I promise. I’m not leaving you.”

Regina shook her head. “There’s no way you could be with me all the time. You have work, a life outside of our relationship.” Tears stung the backs of Regina’s eyes as she thought of Leopold catching her without Emma around.

“Do you trust me, Regina?” Emma asked as she looked down at the brunette.

Regina nodded. “Of course.”

“Then trust me, right now, to ensure your safety. I will _not_ let him touch you again. He won’t get the chance. I promise you.” Emma said sincerely.

Regina cupped Emma’s cheek and brought their lips together in a soft kiss. “I trust you.”

Emma nodded and kissed Regina’s forehead. “Come on, let’s get some rest.”

The two shifted down into the bed. Emma reached over and shut the light off before wrapping her arms around Regina’s waist and pulling her close. “I’ve got you, babe.” She whispered into Regina’s ear.

For once in her life, Regina felt truly protected. She felt safe there in Emma’s arms. She felt as if nothing could get her while the blonde had her wrapped in her embrace. She closed her eyes and all thoughts of the horrid man who had defiled her were gone. Instead, Regina dreamt of Emma and herself. She dreamt of a life where the two were married and living together. She even dreamt of little feet running through her home and in her backyard as she and Emma sat on the porch. Regina slept with a soft smile on her face and got the best night’s sleep of her life.

\---------------SQ--------------

The last day of their weekend together went without a hitch. Regina had blocked her mother’s number and sent a string of texts to Zelena letting her know that if she didn’t stop playing her mother’s messenger, she would suffer the same fate. Regina and Emma had come up with a game plan for the week. Emma would escort Regina to work and check in with her after every class, which was about every hour or so. Regina would text Emma if there was anything unusual happening and Emma would come over to the school if needed. Then, at lunch time, Emma would come to the school to pick Regina up for a lunch date or they would eat in her office. Finally, at the end of the day, Emma would escort Regina home and stay there with her. Regina had offered that they stay at her home because it was closer to both of their workplaces and Emma really didn’t mind. The less traffic she dealt with in the mornings, the better. Plus, Regina’s house was much nicer than her own apartment. The only thing she had to complain about was that her accessibility items were not there.

On Monday, she had ordered takeout to be delivered before she had to escort Regina home and the poor delivery boy was waiting outside the house for nearly thirty minutes before Emma got a call from the place letting her know he was there. She had expressed to Regina the difficulties she was faced with and Regina hadn’t skipped a beat in placing a few things in her home that made Emma’s life easier. Emma was overwhelmed with love and appreciation for Regina literally changing her home to make Emma more comfortable. By Wednesday, Regina’s home was nearly like Emma’s. There were light signals in the kitchen, living room, bedroom and bathroom to let Emma know if someone was at the door or if someone entered the house. The kitchen had a light on the microwave and oven to let Emma know when it was done. And Regina had placed a small intercom system in the house that allowed her to call Emma from anywhere in the house.

Emma had officially taken over one of Regina’s dresser drawers and a part of her closet. She even had her own side of the sink and the left side of the bed was claimed as her own. Emma knew that it was all temporary, but it made her feel wanted. It gave her a sense of belonging that she had never really felt before.

By Thursday, everything had been going smoothly. Emma had her end-of-term exam coming up and had taken a week off from work to prepare and study. She was in Regina’s living room when the light went off, letting her know that someone was at the door. She popped one of her hearing aids into her ear and went to see who was at the door. Regina wasn’t due home for another hour or so because of a teacher conference she was dragged into. Emma went to the door and answered it. The person standing before her took a step back and studied her before he spoke.

“I’m sorry, I seem to have the wrong house. Do you happen to know where Regina Mills lives?”

Emma bit back a growl. She knew who this man was. She gripped the door tightly and shook her head. “No, you got the wrong house buddy.” She tried to make her voice even but was losing the battle with her inner emotions.

The man raised an eyebrow at the blonde. “Really now?” He crossed his arms over his chest before yelling into the empty house. “Regina Mills, I know you are in there. Come out and say hello.”

Emma stood her ground and stepped out onto the porch. She shut the door behind herself, making the man take a few steps back. “It’s time for you to go.” She warned.

“I’ll be back. I don’t know who you are, or what you know. But whatever you think you know, you don’t.” With a sneer, the man turned and left.

Emma could feel herself shaking with rage as she watched the man get into a jacked up truck. She turned back into the house and texted Regina immediately, letting her know that Leopold had come by the house and that she was on her way to the school early. If Leopold knew where Regina worked, he would try there next. Emma grabbed her keys, wallet and phone and made her way to the school.

Regina took a second to look down at her phone during the dreadfully boring meeting she was sucked into. Her face lost all color and her throat became painfully dry as she read what Emma had texted her. She placed her phone back into her purse and hoped that Emma made it to the school before Leopold did. She knew she could get away from him because of her colleagues were around and he wouldn’t do anything to out himself in front of the public. She bit the inside of her cheek as she prepared herself to see him again. She hoped Emma was wrong in assuming he would head to her work. She sat in nervous waiting as she tried to pay attention to the person speaking.

Just as Emma feared, Leopold’s jacked up truck was parked in the school’s parking lot. She growled and turned her bug off as she strode her way into the school building. She saw him waiting at the threshold of the entrance and stormed passed him. She felt him stare daggers at her as the receptionist allowed her to enter but not him. The front office was warned that only Emma was allowed to see Regina and no one else. They didn’t give them much detail, but the school took their students’ and teachers’ safety very seriously.

Emma nearly ran down the hall to find Regina. She pushed her way passed the other teachers that were filing out of the meeting room until she crashed into Regina. She could feel Regina shaking in her arms and soothed her the best she could.

“He’s here. Isn’t he?” Regina whispered against Emma’s chest.

Emma nodded and held Regina tighter to herself. “He’s not gunna hurt you. I’m here.” She soothed.

Emma took Regina by the hand and lead her out the side of the building, hoping to avoid the slimy man waiting at the front. But there was no such luck. Leopold was waiting by Emma’s bug. Emma pushed Regina behind herself as they approached the vehicle.

“Ah, Regina! It’s so nice to see you!” He tried to push passed Emma to embrace Regina, but Emma placed a hand on his chest and pushed him back.

“Nah, you can say what you want from over there.” Emma stood her ground, keeping Regina behind her. She reached back and offered Regina a hand to hold. A smile graced her face as she felt Regina grip her hand, rubbing circles on the top with her thumb.

Leopold frowned and acted as if he was hurt. “Oh, come now, Regina. Call off the retriever and let’s talk like regular people. I’ve missed you so much.”

Emma scoffed at the man for calling her a dog. She kept a safe distance between herself and Regina from the man standing in front of them. She felt Regina’s grip tighten on her hand and her other hand came to grip Emma’s shoulder. Emma squeezed Regina’s hand to reassure her.

“Look, you have something to say other than the fact you missed her? Because we would really like to get home. It’s been a long day.” Emma rolled her eyes, trying her best to keep her temper in check.

Leopold’s gaze shifted from the hiding brunette to Emma. He tried to move closer, but Emma shot out a hand.

“Don’t. Even. Think. About. It” Emma bit out.

Leopold started to get frustrated. He tried once again to rush Emma, but Emma was faster. She ducked and grabbed Regina to move to the side.

“Enough!” Emma was loosing her patience with the man. She huffed and guided Regina to the bug. She got Regina in the passenger seat and closed the door before facing the man again.

Leopold chested up to Emma as she protected the bug’s door. He nearly got in her face as he spoke to the blonde. “I will see her. She _will_ talk to me.”

“In your goddamn dreams!” Emma shouted.

Leopold went to grab for the door of the bug. Emma cut him off with a swift push. “Go. Away.”

Leopold grabbed Emma’s shoulders and slammed her against the car.

Emma just laughed. “Are you sure you want to do this? Here? There is a group of people not too far from us that if I yell, you’ll be trouble.”

Leopold looked behind himself where said group of people had turned their attention to them. He huffed and let Emma go. “This,” He started as he walked backwards, “isn’t over.” With those words, he turned and got into his truck.

Emma didn’t turn her back until the truck was far off into the distance. She took a deep breath before walking to the other side of the car and getting in. She gripped her stirring wheel tightly as she did her best to calm her rage. She looked over and saw tears falling down Regina’s cheeks. All her anger vanished in the second. She placed aa calming on Regina’s lap and offered her a tight smile.

Regina just shook her head as the tears continued. “I’ll never be rid of him. He’ll never leave me alone.” Regina sobbed.

Emma shook her head. “He will leave you be. I texted my friend I have in the police department and gave him that asshole’s license plate number. If he comes by the house again, the cops will be notified, and he can be charged with harassment. I even asked them to send a cop to do rounds by the house to ensure your safety.”

Regina’s tears stopped as she met Emma’s eyes. “You what?” She asked in shock.

Emma saw the shock in Regina’s eyes and smiled. “What did I promise you?”

Regina swallowed. “You’d never let him touch me again.” She whispered.

Emma nodded. “Yes. And I intend to keep that promise.” Emma cupped Regina’s cheek and wiped away her tears with her thumb. “I promise, I will keep you safe.” She leaned over and placed a sweet kiss on Regina’s forehead. “Now, let’s head home. I’m starving and I know you are too.”

Regina nodded and buckled her seatbelt as Emma took off. She studied Emma’s face as she drove and just couldn’t believe how lucky she was. No one had ever done half the things Emma did for her. Emma was her white knight, her hero, her savior. She laced her fingers with Emma’s own as she watched the city fly by them. She truly felt safe and protected with Emma around. For once, she felt truly free.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things are getting very tense in Regina's life. Just when she gets a breath of fresh air, something else comes by and steals her peace. Emma is doing her best to help her girlfriend in anyway she can.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! It's been a minute since I've updated but I got a rush of ideas just in time for my day off. I was able to rapid fire this chapter out in under a few hours, I did some minor changes here and there and the story is moving along quite well. Thank you all for your kind comments. Honestly, it brings me to tears of joy when I read y'all's comments! Thank you so much for reading and commenting. I will do my best to start replying to comments soon. You all are the best! I have so much more planned for this story. I'm still unsure as to how many chapters will be in this story. But please bare with me. A huge amount of fluff is headed your way and maybe some....*whispers* smut... ANYWAY! I hope you like this little update, I'll see you in chapter 10 soon.  
> Much Love,  
> 00psSwanQueen

The weekend had started off rough for Emma and Regina. Regina had received a few unsettling calls from Leopold on Friday, and he showed up twice more at her work. Both times Emma had been with Regina in her classroom. She had expressed to the  front office about a man that was stalking Regina and said she’d feel safer if Regina had her there. Regina had tried to protest, stating that the school had more than enough security to handle Leopold, but Emma fought her on it. In the end, Emma had  gone to school with Regina in the morning. 

It was lunch time when they saw Leopold waiting by Regina’s car. Emma made a quick call to her friend and they sent a police officer to do some rounds. As soon as the man had seen the police car, he took off. The second time he was l oitering by the entrance to the school. Emma didn’t have to call the police that time. The front office took care of that because a creepy older man waiting by an elementary school was reason enough.

Emma and Regina decided to have a safe weekend at home. Emma still had a bunch of studying to do and Regina had her own paperwork to tend to.  By Saturday night, Regina was restless. She felt trapped in her own house and feared if she left,  _ he _ would be waiting for her. She cried in Emma’s arms as the blonde did her best to reassure her that nothing would happen to her ever again. By Sunday, Emma had called the police department with the full intent of getting a restraining order against Leopold White . 

Emma rolled her eyes as the deputy explained that the process would take a few days and that they should not contact him at all before or after the order was approved by the judge. Emma nodded and blocked  Leopold’s number from Regina’s phone. She doubted he  was smart enough to find her number but still blocked it in her phone just in case.

“Emma, it says they have to inform him of the order placed on him.” Regina worried her bottom lip as she read over the papers the deputy had dropped off. 

“Well, yeah. But he can’t fight it. We have too much against him.” Emma shrugged.

“This is just going to cause him to become angry and what if…” Regina swallowed. “Emma, it’s just a piece of paper. What if he comes aft er us? What if he comes after you?”

Emma stood from her place on the couch and stopped Regina’s  hasty pacing. She wrapped her arms around the brunette and kissed the side of her head. “What’s my promise to you?” She whispered.

Regina took a shaky breath. “That he’ll never touch me again.”

“And?”

“That you’ll keep me safe.” 

“That’s right. We are doing everything legally so that if he does try something, he’ll be put away for a long time.  We have evidence against him and its iron tight. The police know his truck, his name and  his license plate. I promise you; you’ll be okay.” Emma  rubbed up and down Regina’s back, pressing soft kisses to her cheek and neck.

Regina melted into Emma touch. She took a few deep breaths before pulling away and connecting their lips in a sweet kiss. “I love you.”

Emma smiled, keeping their forehead connected. “I love you, too.” 

\------------SQ------------

Emma  stood next to Regina as she signed the final paper for the restraining order at the police station on Monday morning. She put the man out of her mind and decided to do something nice for Regina that night after she got home from work. With the order in place, Emma decided to give Regina some time to be alone with her thoughts. She had a  full day of school and Emma figured Regina could do without her looming over her. 

“I’ll pick you up at 5:30, okay?” Emma mumbled against Regina’s shoulder.

Regina nodded. “Okay. I’ll text you at lunch?”

Emma pulled away and smiled. “Yes, please. ”

“Will you join me for lunch, or will you stay at home?”

“I’ll chill at the house. I have another chapter to go over and write notes for. The test is on Wednesday and my professor told us that we could have two cheat sheets for the test! So, I’m going to try to cram as much information on  those two sheets as I possibly can.” Emma shrugged.

“Alright, I’ll see you this afternoon.” Regina  pressed one last longing kiss to Emma’s lips before she turned on her heel and walked into the school building.

Emma turned back to her bug and d ro ve back to Regina’s apartment.  Once she reached the house, she called her friend/co-worker, Ruby.

“Em! I haven’t seen you in like a week! Where have you been girl?”

Emma chuckled. “I’ve been studying for my finals this week. How are things at the office?”   


“So damn boring since you’re not here! Mother Teressa has been barking orders like crazy!” Ruby sighed dramatically.

“Oh, come on. Give Blu a break! She not that bad, really.” Emma laughed. “Anyway, I have a favor to ask of you.”

“What do you need now?” Ruby mocked.

“ You still talk to that little brunette, Belle?”

“Maybe…” Ruby drew out the word with a hint of mischief in her voice.

“Come on, Rubes! I really need this favor.” Emma whined.

“Okay, okay.” Ruby rolled her eyes. “What cha need?”

“Does she still run that little flower shop and café on  Arthur Avenue?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Do you think you could pull some strings and get a rushed order of white and red roses and an Italian style picnic spread for like  five this afternoon?” Emma begged.

Ruby sighed and chuckled a bit. “You got it bad, don’t you Swan?” Ruby laughed.

“Rubes!” Emma whined again.

“Alright, Casanova! I’ll see what I can do . But if I do this for you, you gotta bring that little brunette mystery to meet me.” Ruby  challenged.

Emma bit her lip and grunted. “Fine! But only if you make this happen!”

“Consider it done!” Rubes said. “Shit, Blu just got in. I gotta go before she bites my head off. I’ll text you after I talk to Belle. Bye!”

“Thank you! You’re the best!” Emma smiled as the line went dead. She hoped an afternoon picnic would be just what Regina needed after the hellish week they had. Plus, it would take her mind  off her studies for a bit. She was going cross-eyed reading through all her semester’s work.

With the thought of a lovely evening with her girlfriend in mind, Emma opened her textbooks and began to hum a  song she had long forgotten the lyrics to. She could feel this itch at the back of her mind that something didn’t feel right but decided to ignore it. She was happy and she hoped she could help Regina be happy too.

\---------------SQ-------------

Regina had just finished with her last class before her lunch break. She sat back in the teacher’s desk and groaned at the amount of papers she needed to grade. She hoped the budget would loosen up and allow her to get a substitute for the remainder of the missing teacher’s maternity leave. She was exhausted having to run the school and still teach four classes a day.

She stood and stretched her aching bones as they popped back into place. She really needed to  relax and calm down. She had been so  tightly wound the last week and a half. She knew she would be worse off if it wasn’t for Emma. 

Just the thought of the blonde made Regina smile to herself. She felt a bit her stress melt away when she  felt her phone vibrate in her slack’s pocket. She opened her phone to a picture of Emma on her couch with books open around her and papers tossed about. The quote under the picture read:  _ “ _ _ I don’t think my brain can hold another ounce of information. Hope your day is going better than mine. Xoxo _ _.”  _

Regina smiled and texted the blonde back.  _ “Be sure to clean your mess up in there. If I sit on another one of your highlighters, I’m going to  _ _ strangle you.” _

Regina chuckled to herself remembering when she had come  home one night, exhausted as ever, and nearly threw herself on the couch . She jumped up as soon as she sat down due to the offending highlighter poking her rear-end in the most uncomfortable manner. She remembered Emma nearly falling off the couch laughing  saying that the highlighter had gone to  “ third-base with her girlfriend ”, before she had.

Regina took the stack of papers in her arms and turned to leave her classroom. She was frozen in her spot at the  sight of the person sanding in her classroom door.

“Mother?” Regina swallowed and nearly dropped her students’ papers on the floor.

Her mother smiled a tight smile and adjusted her blazer. “Hello to you too, Regina.” 

Regina took a step back. The bottom of her ass hit the desk as her mother walked into the classroom with mild distaste. “I thought you  weren’t a teacher anymore. Could you not handle being a principal , so they demoted you?” Cora said as she examined the room with a scowl on her face.

“How on earth did you even get in here?” Regina  found her voice and stood up straighter as she watched her mother roam the classroom.

“Straight to the point.” Her mother hummed. “I haven’t seen you in almost a decade and this is how you greet me?” 

Regina gritted her teeth and quickly sent a text to Emma.  “Can’t say we are on the best of terms right now, or ever for that matter.”

“I see your time away from me has tarnished your manners.” Cora seethed. She crossed the classroom quickly, coming up to Regina and grabbing her arm harshly. 

Regina broke her mother’s grip with ease. She stood up and refused to  submit to her mother. “You deserve no respect from me, mother.” Regina  grabbed her papers from where she set them down and pushed passed her mother. “You can see your way out. I have nothing to say to you right now.”

“Don’t you dare turn your back on me, Regina Mills!” Her mother’s voice shot through her like a bullet. She stood at the threshold of her classroom, frozen to the tile.

“You think because now you have some form of a guard dog around that you can disrespect me? I don’t see her around . You will turn your ass around and talk to me with some respect!” Cora stood behind her daughter and gripped her forearm tightly bef o re turning her around .

Regina fought against the hold but felt her mother’s nails dug into her flesh. She bit the inside of her cheek as she fought with her own mind.

“First, you spread these lies about a man that has given you all you have . Then, you disrespect me and our family name by prancing around with another woman? Have you no shame, you filthy slut?” Cora  nearly growled.

Regina tighten her hold on the papers her held to her chest. Her mind told her to stop while she was ahead. It told her to submit before her mother truly became angry. But her heart told a different story. Her heart told her that she was no longer the scared little girl , craving mommy’s approval. She wrestled with her inner thoughts until a voice cut through the deafening silence.

“Gina!” Emma came barreling down the hallway with a security guard  close behind her.

Cora reluctantly  let her daughter’s arm go and took a step back. She watched as a wild haired blonde woman crashed into her daughter and held her tightly. Cora looked her up and down before she rolled her eyes in disgust. 

“Gina, are you okay?” Emma whispered as she held the shaking brunette in her arms. She pressed a sweet kiss to  Regina’s temple as she eyed down the short brunette standing a few feet from them.

“ Take her out of here, Graham.” Emma nearly growled.

“Don’t even think about touching me.” Cora pulled away from the guard.  “I have caused no harm here. I was simply visiting my daughter that I haven’t seen in a long while. Isn’t that right, Regina?” Cora fixed her eyes on the brunette that hid her face in the crook of Emma’s neck.

“Don’t you dare put words in her mouth.” Emma barked.

Graham put up his hands and stood between the three women. “Regina, is there a problem here?” He asked.

Regina could feel her mother’s eyes shooting flames through her back. But all that faded away when Emma’s hand came around her waist protectively. She nodded. “Remove her from this school and don’t let her come back.” Regina straightened and turned to face her mother’s cold stare. Atking a deep breath, she fixed her shirt and eyed her mother down. “Consider this a courtesy, mother. I could press charges against you for what you have done today, but because you are my mother, I will give you this.” 

Regina’s tone was as cold as Emma had ever heard.  Emma almost shrunk back at Regina’s cold stare to her mother.  She was filled with pride and fear as she watched her girlfriend stand up to the shorter brunette.

“You will leave this building ; leave this town . And if you ever come near me again, I will take legal action. I am done living in fear of you.” Regina nodded at the  gruff security guard and stepped out of the doorway.

Cora stared daggers at her daughter as she pulled away from the guard again. “I can escort myself out.” She growled at the man. “You will regret this, Regina.” She  seethed as she left with Graham following behind her.

Once Cora was out of sight, Regina nearly collapsed into Emma’s arms. She let herself breakdown as Emma’s strong arms held her. She gripped Emma’s shirt in a vice grip as she sobbed out her fears and frustrations. It had taken  every ounce of her willpower to stand up to her mother the way she did. She felt a strange mixture of pride and guilt as she sobbed into Emma’s chest.

Emma just held Regina and whispered sweet words of encouragement and praise as she rubbed up and down her back. Emma sat Regina at the desk after she was sure the brunette had cried to her heart ’ s content.  She walked back to where Regina had dropped her papers and picked them up in a neat pile. She placed them on the desk before kneeling between Regina’s knees .

“Hey, babe, how are you feeling?” Emma asked as she ran her hand up and down Regina’s thighs in a soothing motion.

Regina took a deep breath, wiping the  remainder of her mascara from under her eyes. She met Emma’s concerned eyes , cupped her cheek between her hands. She rubbed her thumbs  in circles on Emma’s cheeks. She felt her heart swell with the weight of the love she had for the woman kneeling before her. She  smiled and brought their lips together in a short, sweet kiss. 

“Emma, I feel…” Regina connected their foreheads as a few tears slipped down her cheeks. “free.” She sighed. “Thank you.” She whispered.

Emma shook her head. “Don’t thank me, babe. That was all you.  You’re strong willed and I see the way you direct your classes and teachers. You’ve always had this strength in you.”

“Yes, but you awake ned it in me. You stood by me and didn’t run for the hills when all this came tumbling down.” Regina  choked out.

“Why would I run? I love you. All of you. Just like you, love all of me. You literally modified your whole house for me . You didn’t yell at me or run when I told you I was deaf and kinda broken beyond repair.”

“You are not broken, my sweet Emma.” Regina cupped  the blonde’s cheek as she stared lovingly into those bright green eyes. “You are my white knight.” She whispered.

“And you, are my Queen.” Emma whispered back. She stood and took Regina’s hands in her own. “ Come on, my Majesty. You need to eat before you get another round of those little monsters.” She chuckled.

Regina bumped Emma’s hip with her own. “They are not little monsters.” She chuckled and grabbed her stack of papers. “They are my little  angels.”

Emma rolled her eyes as she led Regina out of the classroom to her office with a protective hand on the small of her back. “Whatever you say, my Queen.”

\-----------SQ------------

After Emma had been sure that Regina had something in her stomach for lunch, she headed back to the house to clean up her mess in the living room. She was picking up her notebooks and making sure she didn’t leave her pens on the couch when her phone vibrated in her pocket. She looked at the caller ID and noticed the number was unknown. She answered with a quick, “ Yeah?”

“Hello, is this Emma Swan?” A woman with a thick British accent  asked.

“Speaking .”

“Hi, this is Belle from  _ Flowers by The Sea and Café.  _ I was just calling to confirm the pick-up for the roses and picnic spread at five?”

“Oh, hey! Yeah, I’ll be there!” Emma smiled  as she thought about the surprise she had planned for Regina. “Do you happen to know a good bottle of wine to pair with everything?”

Belle chuckled. “You got it. I know the perfect bottle.” She smiled. 

“Great! I’ll be there at five to pick everything up!”

“Alright, I’ll see you then.”

Emma hung up the phone and sent a text to Ruby.

** E: You are a life saver Rubes! **

** R ** ** ubes: Yeah, I know…So when are you bringing this woman around so I can give her the whole “If you hurt my sister” talk? **

** E: Rubes…DON’T. YOU. DARE. **

** Rubes:  ** ** Oh, come on, Em ** **! Do you really think I would? **

** E: Uhhh, YEAH! **

** Rubes: You have no faith in me! I am offended! Humph! **

** E: lmao!  ** ** I’ll see if I can convince her to come with me to work this weekend. I have to check in with Blu anyway.  **

** Rubes: She misses you. She was talking about you yesterday. We had a deaf parent come in and since Blu only studders in ASL, they were passing a notepad back and forth. Lol **

** E: Poor Blu! Tell her I miss her too. I’ll be back before you know it! **

** Rubes: We should plan a girls’ night after your tests **

** E: Maybe. I’ll check with Regina. **

** Rubes: Damn! You haven’t even put a ring on it and already you have to run your plans by her? **

** E: Oh, fuck off, Rubes! **

** Rubes:  ** ** I’m just messing with you, Em. You seem really serious about this one. **

** E: Rubes, I really think she’s the one.  ** ** I’ve never felt this way before. **

** Rubes: Wow. Not even with Lily? **

** E: ….we are not talking about that right now **

** Rubes: Sorry, Em. Anyway, keep me updated. I gotta go before Blu  ** ** chews my ass out. Love ya sis! Xoxo **

** E: Love ya too, Rubes. Ttyl **

Emma put her phone down and figured she take a quick nap before she went to pick up the food for the picnic. She sighed as she thought about what she confessed to Ruby. She knew she loved Regina more than she had loved anyone else. She was really starting to think Regina was her  forever. That thought made Emma smile as she settled into the couch to catch a few hours of sleep before she had to get ready for their surprise picnic date.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Picnic date! Who doesn't love a bit of romance and fluff? Emma does her best to help Regina relax after the hell they've been pushing through.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello my lovelies! I've miss you all so much! I got a huge spark of inspiration and was able to complete this fluff filled chapter and start on the next one! Thank you all for your kind words and kudos! You all are the best! Honestly, I'm sobbing over here! Thank you so much for sticking with me. I have a general idea for how many more chapters this will be and believe me, we are NOWHERE near the end. I have so much more planned for our ladies. I just love them so much! Okay, enough out of me! On with the fluffy goodness!   
> Much Love,  
> 00psSwanQueen

Emma awoke with a start. She rubbed her eyes as she tried to take in her surroundings. She momentarily forgot where she was. Once her mind registered that she was in Regina’s living room, she relaxed a little. She lifted her phone and saw it was a quarter to five.

“FUCK!” Emma nearly tumbled off the couch and ran up the stairs to fix herself. She grabbed her favorite red leather jacket, a nice white tank top and her skinny jeans before rushing into the bathroom to freshen up a bit.

Emma growled at the New York traffic at this hour. She had just picked up the roses and the food along with a vintage bottle of sweet red wine. Now she was fighting against the “after-work” traffic of the large city. She shot a quick text to Regina letting her know she’d more than likely be a few minutes late.

\--------SQ--------

Regina laughed with one of her co-workers as they talked about their classes. Some of the children had tried to play hooky and wound up sneaking into the teacher’s lounge while Regina was in there making copies. Regina laughed as she was retelling the story.

“I’m telling you, Tink, the boys almost fainted! I didn’t even open my mouth before they were nearly in tears.”

The blonde-haired art teacher rolled her eyes as she sipped on her coffee. “I’m sure they weren’t expecting you but expecting one of us.”

Regina shook her head and eyed the art teacher. “What? Do you let them get away with stuff like that?”

Tink nearly spit out her coffee and shook her head. “No! Never! But I’m sure they are less scared of us than they are of you.”

Regina just rolled her eyes. She felt her phone vibrate in her slack’s pocket and pulled it out. She saw Emma’s message saying she was running late. She just sighed with a small smile playing at the corners of her mouth.

\-------------SQ------------

Regina sat outside the school building on a bench. She had her legs crossed over one another as she waited for Emma to show up. When the blonde had texted her saying a few minutes, she was sure she meant maybe five or ten. But it had been nearly forty-five minutes after Emma was supposed to pick her up that Regina saw the little yellow bug come screeching to a stop in front of the building.

Regina stood from her place on the bench and gathered her things. She had a large folder of papers to grade tonight and a test to prepare for the children’s end of semester. She turned to walk over to the bug but stopped.

Emma stood with the passenger door open and a dozen white and red roses in her hand. Her hair wasn’t perfect, but she had done her best to wash, dry and curl it. She even dusted some foundation on her face and applied a bit of mascara and eyeliner. She smiled a shy smile at the brunette.

Regina was speechless. She walked up to Emma and dropped her things next her feet. She cupped Emma’s cheek and connected their lips in a sweet kiss.

Emma smiled brightly into the kiss. Once she pulled away, she offered the brunette the roses. “I hope this isn’t too much. I also have a surprise for you.”

“Emma…” Regina breathed.

“I thought we could go to the park and just relax. We’ve had a crazy few days and I thought we could wind down and just enjoy each other’s company.”

“These are beautiful and that is a wonderful idea.” Regina took the flowers from Emma, humming at the sweet fragrance. “What did I do to deserve you?” She mused as she pressed another kiss to Emma’s lips.

“You were just you and that’s more than enough.” Emma smiled. “Shall we?” She asked stepping to the side to allow Regina to get into the car.

Regina reached down to grab her things, but Emma beat her to it.

“I got this.” She smiled at the brunette. Emma placed Regina’s things in the back of the bug and got into the driver’s seat. She laced her fingers with the brunette’s as she drove off to the park.

\-----------SQ-----------

About twenty minutes, and a few curse words thrown at drivers, later the two women reached the quiet little park.

Emma grabbed the picnic from the back and walked hand in hand with Regina to find a nice spot for them. She laid out the blanket and helped Regina sit before making herself comfortable.

Regina was in awe of what the blonde had done for her. The food the blonde brought out of the little basket looked amazing. Fresh cut bread, salami, peperoni, and a small assortment of different cheeses were placed between the two. Emma opened the bottle of sweet red wine and pour each of the them a glass.

Regina took a small sip, humming at the flavor. “Emma, you didn’t have to do all this.”

“I know. But I felt like maybe, we needed it. We’ve been running around like crazy and we really haven’t been able to let our hair down. I know you were getting tired of being at the house and school is just more stress on your back. So, I figured a park picnic date would be perfect to just leave all that behind and just focus on each other.” Emma blushed as she sipped her own glass of wine.

Though the pair had spent most of their time together, they never really spent time _with_ each other. Emma was busy studying her ass off and Regina was always grading papers or worrying about that scumbag of a man. Emma missed the carefree Regina. The one that made her laugh at the stupidest shit. The one who would call her at three in the morning just to talk. But the blonde also understood why Regina was so tightly wound up. Everything from her past had made an appearance in the last week. Emma knew Regina needed this moment of peace. She deserved to be able to relax and just let go. Emma hoped that she could give that to the brunette, even if it was only for a moment.

Emma was pulled from her thoughts when Regina’s hand found its way into her own. She gave it a small squeeze and leaned over to press a kiss to Regina’s cheek.

“Thank you, Emma. This is all so wonderful. I think we really needed this, too.” Regina smiled.

As they ate and sipped on the sweet wine, they made pleasant conversation about their day. Emma had told Regina that her friend/co-worker, Ruby, wanted to meet her. She told Regina that they were going to plan a girls’ night out and that she wanted Regina to come.

Regina joked that she was a little too old to go bar hopping with a bunch of children. To which Emma replied that they haven’t bar hopped in years.

Emma started to pack things away once the sun began to set. The wine was gone and most of the spread had been eaten. Regina had told her she could use the leftover meat and cheese for omelets in the morning. Emma nodded enthusiastically, loving when Regina cooked. She told Regina to stay put while she packed the car. They decided to put the things away but spend a bit more time at the park.

Regina watched as Emma walked away with a smile on her face. She couldn’t imagine why this wonderful woman wanted her. She had so much wrong in her life and this amazing blonde just rolled with it. She stood by her and never let her feel alone in her pain and trauma. She thanked whatever god there was out there that Emma was hers and only hers.

Regina was brought out her wonderful thoughts by a small cry coming from a few feet away from her. She whipped her head around and saw a small boy on the ground, crying. Regina didn’t think twice before she stood and nearly ran over to the boy.

“Hey, hey, what happened?” She cooed in a soothing tone.

The boy looked up at her with big glossy blue eyes, holding his knee. “I-I fell down.” He sniffled.

Regina knelt next to the small child and pulled out a tissue from her pocket. She handed the tissue to the small boy and slowly helped him up. “Where’s your mommy, sweetheart?” She looked around for a sign of the boy’s parents but found none. Her heart ached painfully in her chest as the boy cried a bit harder. She instantly took this little one into her arms, hushing his cries the best she could.

“It’s okay, it’s okay.” Regina hushed and wiped away the boy’s tears. “We’re going to find mommy, okay?”

“My knee h-hurts.” The young boy whimpered out.

Emma, who just returned from the car, came rushing to her girlfriend’s side. She noticed the small child and raised an eyebrow at the brunette.

“Gina, what happened?” Emma asked.

The boy took one look at the blonde and buried his face in Regina’s neck, as he began to cry again. The boy couldn’t have been more than four years old, Regina thought to herself.

Regina rubbed up and down the boy’s back, scanning the park once again before facing Emma. “I heard him fall and I don’t see any sign of his parents around. I think he hurt his knee.”

Emma motioned for Regina to follow her back to the car. She rummaged through her glovebox until she found her first-aid kit. Regina sat in the driver’s seat with the boy in her lap. “It’s going to be alright, darling. This is my girlfriend, Emma. She’s going to help make your knee feel better.” She cooed as she held the boy close.

Emma knelt in front of the two and gently took the boy’s leg in her hand. When he flinched, Emma offered him a small smile. “It’s alright, I’m going to make it all better, okay? Do you have a name?”

The boy nodded. “James.” He mumbled as his fingers found their way into his mouth.

“Hi, James, I’m Emma.” Emma held out her hand for the little boy to take.

The little blue-eyed boy shook the blonde’s hand. Once Emma let go of the boy’s hand she focused back on the scrapped knee. It wasn’t too bad, and it didn’t bleed too much. Emma took a baby wipe out and cleaned the scrape as best she could without causing the little one any more pain. Once she finished, she got little James’ attention.

“Okay, brave little one.” She smiled. “I have two kinds of band-aids. You can have a Batman one or I have Star Wars.”

The boy smiled brightly and it warmed Regina’s heart. Emma was amazing with children, despite her sly comments about the children in Regina’s classes. She watched as Emma joked with the small boy and made him laugh.

Once the blonde had put the Batman band-aid on his knee, he squirmed out of Regina’s hold and attacked Emma in a bear hug. Emma wrapped her arms around the little boy and smiled at the brunette.

Regina felt tears sting the backs of her eyes as an image crashed into her mind. She placed her hand over her stomach as the image of Emma playing with children of their own in her backyard. Emma would be an amazing mother. Regina had always wanted children; it was one of the main reasons she wanted to be a teacher. She shook the images out of her mind as she stood.

“Come on, James. Let’s see if we can find mommy.” Regina smiled. The little boy slipped his hand into Regina’s as they walked around the park for any signs of the boy’s parents.

The three of them walked for a moment until they found a very distraught woman pacing back and forth in front of the playground.

“He’s four years old, brown hair and blue eyes. He was wearing a green shirt with black shorts. One moment he was here and then I couldn’t find him. Please can you send an officer down here?!” The hysterical redheaded woman cried into the phone.

“Ma’am?” Regina approached the woman tenderly with the boy in tow.

“Mommy!” The little boy pulled from Regina and rushed to the redhead.

“James! Oh my god!” The redheaded woman knelt down and scooped up her child. “Oh, god. I found him. It’s okay. You don’t have to send anyone.” She hung up the phone, checking over her child. Finally, she looked up to find Regina and Emma standing a few feet away.

“Thank you.” She sighed as she wiped her tears.

“It’s not a problem. I understand little boys can be quiet adventurous at this age.” Regina chuckled and waved at the little boy.

“He’s got a little scrape on his knee, but I cleaned it up and put a band-aid on it. He should be alright.” Emma winked at the boy.

“God, I don’t even know what I would have done if I couldn’t find him. I swear I only turned my back for a moment.” The redhead sighed and held her child closer to her chest.

“It’s okay. I know that children tend to wonder off at a drop of a hat.” Regina mused.

“Do you have children?” The redhead asked.

“Oh, no.” Regina shook her head. “I’m a principal at a local elementary school.”

The redhead nodded. “Thank you so much for bringing him to back to me.”

Regina smiled. “It’s not a problem. Stay safe, James.” She cooed at the toddler.

“Bye-bye Gina and Em!” The boy waved.

The two women bid the woman a good evening and waved once more at the squirming toddler before making their way back to Emma’s car.

\-----------SQ---------

The two had driven home in a peaceful silence. Emma had left Regina in her study so she could shower before they cuddled on Regina’s bed and watched TV.

Regina sat at her desk as she looked over her students’ work. She was very impressed with the improvement they had made in their grammar and spelling. Their papers had become easier to read and she found herself using less and less of her red pen to make corrections.

The thoughts of her students brought back the image of the little boy they had returned to his mother at the park. She had never seen Emma interact with child up close. She had seen the blonde joke with a few of her students when they questioned her about her hearing aids. She loved the way Emma interacted with children. Her mind, once again, wondered off to that place with her, Emma and a few children in the backyard of her home. She let out a longing sigh as she continued to grade her students’ work.

Emma towel dried her hair as she stepped out of the bathroom. She opted for a warm soak in the tub as opposed to the shower. Her muscles thanked her for the lovely treatment as they ceased their aching. She scanned the room and saw no signs that Regina had come into the room. She sighed and shook her head, knowing she’d find the woman in her study.

Emma walked to the short distance to the woman’s study and leaned against the door frame. She watched as Regina scanned each sentence with her eyes. She adored watching the woman work. Regina’s nose would crinkle in the cutest way when she found a mistake or read something that was absolutely absurd. Emma padded her way to her girlfriend’s desk to stand beside her.

Regina was so engrossed in her work that she didn’t notice the blonde come to stand beside her. She startled for a moment when Emma’s hand came to rest on her shoulder.

“Emma, darling, you scared the life out of me.” Regina gasped.

Emma smirked. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to. Have you moved at all from this spot since I left you?” Emma knew she’d been in the tub for well over an hour. Her wrinkled fingers and toes were a dead giveaway of that.

“Not really. I stood once to grab my bag but there’s just so much work that needs my attention.” The brunette sighed.

Emma nodded and pressed a kiss to the side of Regina’s head. “Try not to overwork yourself, babe.” The blonde nudged the brunette with her nose.

Regina smiled at Emma’s kindness. She caught the blonde before she waked away and pulled her down into her lap.

Emma yelped as she was pulled into Regina’s lap, then let out a string of giggles. “A simple, ‘I don’t want you to go yet’ would have been enough to get me to stay.”

Regina nuzzled her nose against Emma’s. “I rather like when I surprise you. You make the cutest noises.”

Emma adjusted herself so she was sitting on Regina’s lap properly. She threw her legs over one of the armrests and laid her head on Regina’s shoulder. “Am I hurting you?” Emma asked.

Regina shook her head and rolled her chair a little closer to her desk, successfully trapping the blonde in her embrace. She pressed a kiss to Emma forehead and grabbed the paper she was looking over before the blonde had come in.

The blonde felt a calm feeling overtake her senses as she sat on Regina’s lap. One of the brunette’s hands were tracing random patters on her lower back and the other flipped through page after page of schoolwork she graded. Every so often, Emma would feel Regina’s chest vibrate as she hummed in approval or disapproval at the students’ work.

The quiet of the room paired with the soothing touch and embrace of her girlfriend, finally came to affect the blonde. She felt her eyelids grow heavy and she was finding it harder and harder to keep them open. She finally submitted to her body’s wishes and closed her tired eyes. She felt Regina kiss her forehead and that was the last drop of her willpower. She took a deep breath and allowed herself to fall asleep there in the arms of the person she loved with all her heart.

Regina noticed almost immediately when Emma had fallen asleep. She smiled to herself as she continued to grade a few more papers. She was so content with the woman in her arms and so full of love for her. She placed the last paper down for the night and wrapped her arms fully around the blonde. She leaned back in her chair and rubbed soothing circles on Emma’s back. Regina let her own eyes shut for a moment as she just enjoyed this moment of calm they shared. Her day couldn’t have been better. Emma was perfect. She was thoughtful and caring and protective of Regina. The brunette admired the strong woman she held. She kissed her cheeks a few times to wake the blonde so they could retire to bed together.

Emma huffed and wrestled with her body to open her eyes. Once she got control over her eyes and slowly opened them, she was greeted by the softest look from her brunette girlfriend. A small, sleepy smile found its way to the corners of the blonde’s lips and she snuggled further into Regina’s arms.

Regina’s heart swelled with love as she gazed down at Emma. Her eyes were sparkling with sleepiness and she had a small smile on her lips. To Regina, she looked positively breathtaking. She cupped the blonde’s cheek and brought their lips together in a sweet kiss.

“Come on, sleepy head. Let’s get to bed.” Regina cooed.

Emma pouted at the idea that she would have to move. She was very comfortable in Regina’s warm arms. She reluctantly swung her legs down after Regina rolled the chair away from her desk. Emma stood on shaky legs as She waited for Regina to finish filing her work away. Emma nearly fell back to sleep standing up, but the brunette caught her against her chest and chuckled.

“My, my, someone is a sleepy one.” Regina smiled.

Emma just leaned into Regina’s embrace and nodded. She didn’t want to move but she did want to lay down. She tried stepping away from Regina to sleepily make her way to the bedroom where she could just toss herself under the sheets. But Regina had other plans. She bent forward a bit and grabbed Emma under her thighs, hoisting her up against her.

Emma woke a bit more as she felt her feet leave the ground. She yelped as she arms flew around Regina’s neck and her legs locked around the brunette’s waist. She looked deep into Regina’s eyes and shook her head. “Warn a woman before you sweep her off her feet.” She mumbled and nuzzled her head into the crook of Regina’s neck.

Regina chuckled. “You looked like you were about to drop right here on my study’s floor. My poor baby.” Regina mock pouted as she made her way out of the study, shutting the lights off on her way out.

Emma huffed but made no attempt to fight the brunette’s hold. “You’re lucky I love you and that you’re hot. I really don’t like being manhandled.”

Regina stopped her movement as she entered the bedroom. She looked sideways at the woman she carried and gave her a saddened look. “I’m sorry, Emma, I just…”

Emma shut Regina up quickly by pressing her lips to hers. “I like when you carry me or sit me on your lap. It’s just that, I’m not used to having someone doing these things for me. I hated when my foster parents would try to pick me up or hold me. I never felt safe enough to trust them not to drop me or throw me down. But with you, it’s different.” Emma took a deep breath, looking meaningfully into Regina’s eyes. “I feel this sense of calm wash over me when you wrap your arms around me. I felt safe and loved.” Emma whispered the last part as she hid her face in Regina’s neck again.

Regina walked over to the bed and sat on the edge with Emma sit wrapped out her. She cradled the woman head to her and felt a sharp pain shoot through her chest. Emma never had someone to hold her. No one to protect her. No one to love her. Sure, Regina didn’t have a mother that loved her, or held her. But her sister did. Her sister would rock her to sleep when she was little and had nightmares. But Emma didn’t have that. She felt this need to shower the woman in her arms with kisses and hugs and comfort. She never wanted Emma to feel unloved ever again. She ran her fingers through Emma’s damp hair and kissed her temple. “I love you, Emma.”

Emma melted even further into the brunette’s hold. She felt tears gather in her eyes as she squeezed Regina tighter. “I love you too.”


End file.
